U.S. Route 9W (US 9W) is a north–south

United States Numbered Highway The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...

in the states of

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. It begins in

Fort Lee, New Jersey Fort Lee is a Borough (New Jersey), borough at the eastern border of Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, situated along the Hudson River atop The Palisades (Hudson River), The Palisades. As of the 2020 Uni ...

, as Fletcher Avenue crosses the US 1/9, US 46, and Interstate 95 (I-95) approaches to the

George Washington Bridge The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee in Bergen County, New Jersey, with the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is named after George W ...

, and heads north up the west side of the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

to US 9 in

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...

. As its "W" suffix indicates, US 9W is a westerly alternate route of US 9 between the two locations. US 9W directly serves three cities— Newburgh,

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, and Albany—and enters the vicinity of several others. As the route heads north, it connects to several highways of regional importance, including

I-84 Interstate 84 may refer to: * Interstate 84 (Oregon–Utah), passing through Idaho, formerly known as Interstate 80N * Interstate 84 (Pennsylvania–Massachusetts), passing through New York and Connecticut {{road disambiguation ...

US 209 U.S. Route 209 (US 209) is a long U.S. Highway in the states of Pennsylvania and New York. Although the route is a spur of US 9, US 209 never intersects US 9, coming within five miles of the route and making the short ...

New York State Route 23 New York State Route 23 (NY 23) is an east–west state highway in the eastern portion of New York in the United States. It extends for from an intersection with NY 26 in the Central New York town of Cincinnatus in Cortland Cou ...

(NY 23), and US 20. Much of US 9W parallels the

New York State Thruway The New York State Thruway (officially the Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway and colloquially "the Thruway") is a system of controlled-access toll roads spanning within the U.S. state of New York. It is operated by the New York State Thruway ...

and NY 32; additionally, the latter overlaps with US 9W in four locations.

Route description

For much of its length, US 9W is a two-lane surface road. However, some stretches in New Jersey and New York widen to four lanes, and much of the highway in Orange County is like an expressway even if not so designated.

New Jersey

US 9W begins as a four-lane road. Heading north on Fletcher Avenue (from Kelby Street intersection, near the

) in Fort Lee, US 9W occupies the

right-of-way A right of way (also right-of-way) is a specific route that people, animals, vehicles, watercraft, or utility lines travel, or the legal status that gives them the right to do so. Rights-of-way in the physical sense include controlled-access h ...

of the

Palisades Interstate Parkway The Palisades Interstate Parkway (PIP) is a controlled-access parkway in the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York. The parkway is a major commuter route into New York City from Rockland and Orange counties in New York and Bergen County in ...

(PIP) to Lemoine Avenue, the northern terminus of Route 67. US 9W exits the right-of-way, turning north onto Lemoine Avenue, later Sylvan Avenue, in

Englewood Cliffs Englewood Cliffs is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 5,342, an increase of 61 (+1.2%) from the 2010 census count of 5,281, which in turn reflected a ...

, where it passes the headquarters of

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...

of North America,

Unilever Unilever PLC () is a British multinational consumer packaged goods company headquartered in London, England. It was founded on 2 September 1929 following the merger of Dutch margarine producer Margarine Unie with British soap maker Lever B ...

, and

CNBC CNBC is an American List of business news channels, business news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group, a unit of Comcast's NBCUniversal. The network broadcasts live business news and analysis programming during the morning, Day ...

. As the roadway enters Tenafly from Englewood Cliffs, it reduces to a two lane roadway from four lanes. It continues to parallel the PIP to its west as they progress northward along the west bank of the

until reaching the border with New York. Both roads run very near the top of the Palisades, occasionally offering views of New York City and the river. Lemoine Avenue is heavy with commercial development in the Coytesville section of Fort Lee, but, as the road runs into Englewood Cliffs, it transitions to corporate office buildings. Into the affluent community of

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

in the state's northeastern corner, it becomes more residential. Near Norwood, just south of the state line, US 9W crosses under the parkway and enters New York. Before the construction of the PIP, US 9W used to follow a route through the State Line Lookout at the New Jersey–New York border which is now accessible only from the parkway. The entire route of US 9W in New Jersey is within

Bergen County Bergen County is the List of counties in New Jersey, most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Palisades as Highland Avenue, a two-lane road through mostly residential suburban surroundings. It passes

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory The Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO) is a research, research institution specializing in the Earth science and climate change. Though part of Columbia University, it is located on a separate closed campus in Palisades, New York. The obs ...

and then Tallman Mountain State Park. Bending westward to Sparkill, it meets NY 340. It returns to the riverside at Piermont, where it takes the name Broadway Avenue. Running due north, it enters Nyack and meets with the

(

I-87 Interstate 87 may refer to either of two unconnected Interstate Highways in the United States: * Interstate 87 (New York), a highway running from New York City north to the Canadian border in Champlain, New York. * Interstate 87 (North Carolina) ...

and I-287) just west of the Tappan Zee Bridge. It then runs along the thruway to the east terminus of NY 59 in downtown Nyack, where it becomes North Highland Avenue once again. North of Upper Nyack, it passes Rockland Lake through

Valley Cottage Valley Cottage is a hamlet and census-designated place within Clarkstown, located in Rockland County, New York, United States. It is located northeast of West Nyack, northwest of Central Nyack, east of Bardonia, south of Congers, northwest ...

and then

Rockland Lake State Park Rockland Lake State Park is a state park located in the hamlets of Congers and Valley Cottage in the eastern part of the Town of Clarkstown in Rockland County, New York, United States. The park is located on a ridge of Hook Mountain above t ...

. Alongside the park, it crosses town lines again. NY 303 reaches its north end just after the park and, after a tight curve NY 304, reaches its northern terminus as well. US 9W then returns to the riverside briefly, trending away from it into Haverstraw under the name Congers Avenue. The village is followed immediately by

West Haverstraw West Haverstraw is a village incorporated in 1883 in the town of Haverstraw, Rockland County, New York, United States. It is located northwest of Haverstraw village, east of Thiells, south of the hamlet of Stony Point, and west of the Hudson R ...

, where US 202 comes in at an oblique angle and joins US 9W, creating the first

concurrency Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

along the route. The combined highways head north from the Haverstraws as South, then North, Liberty Drive, passing

Stony Point Battlefield Stony Point Battlefield is a historic site in Rockland County, New York; the location of the 1779 Battle of Stony Point during the American Revolutionary War. It is a National Historic Landmark and has a museum. History The site was purchased and ...

. They return to the Hudson at Tomkins Cove, where the Hudson River

National Defense Reserve Fleet The National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF) consists of Ship, ships of the United States, mostly Merchant ship, merchant vessels, that have been Reserve fleet, mothballed but can be activated within 20 to 120 days to provide shipping during nationa ...

was moored from 1947 to 1971. Between Tomkins Cove and Jones Point there are two large ships anchor surrounding a monument alongside the road that marks the spot which is just across from

Indian Point Energy Center Indian Point Energy Center (I.P.E.C.) is a now defunct three-unit nuclear power station located in Buchanan, just south of Peekskill, in Westchester County, New York. It sits on the east bank of the Hudson River, about north of Midtown Manh ...

in Buchanan. US 9W north of Stony Point

At Jones Point, the road curves and bends above the river as it works its way around

Dunderberg Mountain Dunderberg Mountain is a mountain on the west bank of the Hudson River at the southern end of the Hudson Highlands. It lies just above Jones Point, New York, within Bear Mountain State Park and the town of Stony Point, New York, Stony Point in ...

, the southernmost peak of the

Hudson Highlands The Hudson Highlands are mountains on both sides of the Hudson River in New York (state), New York state lying primarily in Putnam County, New York, Putnam County on its east bank and Orange County, New York, Orange County on its west. They conti ...

and part of

Bear Mountain State Park Bear Mountain State Park is a state park located on the west bank of the Hudson River in Rockland County, New York, Rockland and Orange County, New York, Orange counties, New York (state), New York. The park offers biking, hiking, boating, pic ...

. At Iona Island, it levels out again briefly and then US 9W/US 202 climbs to the heart of the state park at Bear Mountain Inn and Hessian Lake, where the

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tra ...

crosses beneath the road in the only artificial tunnel along its entire route. The Orange County line is crossed just before Bear Mountain Circle.

Orange County

The circle marks the northern terminus of the PIP and the junction with US 6. US 202 leaves US 9W to join US 6 here and cross the

Bear Mountain Bridge The Bear Mountain Bridge, ceremonially named the Purple Heart Veterans Memorial Bridge, is a toll suspension bridge in New York State. It carries U.S. Route 6 in New York, US 6 and U.S. Route 202 in New York, US 202 across the Hudso ...

. North of the circle, US 9W continues as a four-lane surface road, crossing

Popolopen Creek Popolopen is the name of several related landmarks mainly within the Hudson Highlands of Orange County, New York. These include a peak, Popolopen Torne—or simply "The Torne", and a short and steep-sided nearby valley officially called Hell ...

and affording views of the similarly named Torne. It passes first the historic Fort Montgomery, then enters the small hamlet of the same name, distinguished by a post office, gas station, and some other small businesses. After becoming a four-lane expressway, NY 218 ( Storm King Highway), the former route of US 9W, forks off to the right, carrying traffic to Highland Falls and the

U.S. Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as commissioned officers in the United States Army. The academy was founded ...

(USMA) at

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

. US 9W then starts to climb the highlands above the village and the academy. The following exit is also for NY 218, which joins US 9W for just north of the village. It leaves the highway at the northern terminus of NY 293 to run alongside Storm King Mountain. From here, US 9W continues its ascent, offering sweeping views over the river and highlands, with an overlook available to northbound drivers. The surrounding land is all woods, part of the vast USMA property. After passing Crow's Nest, Storm King and the rocky cliff faces of Butter Hill dominate the northward view. Another parking lot allows travelers to stop and sightsee, as well as hike the Stillman Trail up the two peaks. After Storm King, the road begins a long descent into the town of

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, where it becomes a two-lane surface road before becoming a four-lane

arterial road An arterial road or arterial thoroughfare is a high-capacity urban road that sits below highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights o ...

. Just outside the village of Cornwall-on-Hudson and the fields of

New York Military Academy New York Military Academy (NYMA) is a Private school, private, College-preparatory school, college preparatory, boarding school in Cornwall, New York, and one of the oldest List of United States military schools and academies, military schools i ...

, NY 218 ends its loop. Shortly afterward, the division ends, although the road remains four lanes as it enters the town of New Windsor. US 9W in Hudson Highlands

It descends again where Breakneck Ridge and Bull Hill tower across the river. Traffic begins to slow down at the center of town, where NY 94 ends its journey across the county. After this traffic light, the road begins to narrow. Once across

Quassaick Creek Quassaick Creek (Quassaic Creek on federal maps; also once known as Chambers Creek) is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed October 3, 2011 tributary of the Hudson River ...

and into Newburgh, it is Robinson Avenue, a wide urban arterial with parking along the sides. It ascends gently past

Delano-Hitch Stadium Delano-Hitch Stadium is a stadium in Newburgh (city), New York, Newburgh, New York (state), New York; it has a current capacity of 3,100. Early years Baseball in Newburgh goes back to the 1860s: the Hudson River club played from 1863 to 1867, co ...

and the associated park to the center of its passage across Newburgh, the intersection with Broadway. Here NY 17K has its eastern terminus, and NY 32, the other main surface route west of the Hudson, begins its first concurrency with US 9W. Passing Broadway School, a former elementary school which is in the process of being converted into the City of Newburgh Court House, the two routes head into a more residential sector of the city, marked by

Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822 – August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, Social criticism, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the U ...

-designed Downing Park. The road's climb continues until the North campus of Newburgh Free Academy, where it starts to descend to the busy exit at

, visible ahead, just west of the Newburgh–Beacon Bridge. This junction, also including NY 52, is the city's northern limit. Immediately after it, NY 32 leaves to the northwest while US 9W continues northward. It passes

Powelton Club Powelton Club is located between US 9W, Interstate 84, Balmville Road and Chestnut Lane in the hamlet of Balmville, New York, United States, just north of the city of Newburgh, in the Town of Newburgh. Originally established as an archery cl ...

, part of the affluent community of Balmville, the first of several within the town of Newburgh that US 9W will pass. Middle Hope follows, as the road becomes a two-lane route with a rural feel. Development continues along the road, but there are increasingly large unbroken fields or

woodlot A woodlot is a parcel of a woodland or forest capable of small-scale production of forest products (such as wood fuel, sap for maple syrup, sawlogs, and pulpwood) as well as recreational uses like bird watching, bushwalking, and wildflower appre ...

s and, finally, in the northern reaches of the town,

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit tree, fruit- or nut (fruit), nut-producing trees that are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also so ...

s. At Roseton, past the access road to the nearby powerplants, the highway reaches the county line just past the turnoff to the Gomez Mill House, the earliest surviving Jewish home in the U.S.

Ulster County

Traffic is slowed when it passes through the hamlet of

Marlboro Marlboro (, ) is an American brand of cigarettes owned and manufactured by Philip Morris USA (a branch of Altria) within the United States and by Philip Morris International (PMI, now separate from Altria) in most global territories outside the ...

, but otherwise there is little change in US 9W until it widens to four lanes again just south of the

Mid-Hudson Bridge The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Mid-Hudson Bridge is a toll bridge, toll suspension bridge which carries U.S. Highway 44, US 44 and New York State Route 55, NY 55 across the Hudson River between Poughkeepsie, New York, Poughkeepsie and Highland, U ...

approach overpass. At this point, US 44 and

NY 55 New York State Route 55 (NY 55) is a east-west state highway in southern New York, running from the Pennsylvania state line at the Delaware River in Barryville to the Connecticut state line at Wingdale. It is the only other state ...

join the highway from the east. The road becomes a busy commercial strip for the next mile to the concurrency's end, where NY 44 and NY 55 go down into

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

. The four lanes continue, however, for several more miles until well past the eastern terminus of NY 299, the road that carries traffic west toward the thruway and

New Paltz New Paltz () is an incorporated U.S. town in Ulster County, New York. The population was 14,407 at the 2020 census. The town is located in the southeastern part of the county and is south of Kingston. New Paltz contains a village, also with the ...

. About north of that intersection, the road returns to two lanes through West Park and Esopus, passing primarily through largely undeveloped, primarily wooded countryside. It becomes more built up at Port Ewen, just south of Kingston, which it enters by crossing

Rondout Creek Rondout Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 tributary of the Hudson River in Ulster and Sullivan counties, New York, United States. It rises on Roc ...

via the John T. Loughran Bridge and becoming a four-lane expressway known as Frank Koenig Boulevard. US 9W Kingston south approach

It runs right through Kingston this way and meets NY 32 again at the city's northern boundary. Turning left, US 9W's second concurrency with NY 32 is only long as it almost immediately turns right onto East Chester Street. The road widens again, becoming a busy commercial strip. At the freeway interchange ahead for the Kingston–Rhinecliff Bridge,

comes to its northern end and NY 199 its western. In Lake Katrine, the road begins to narrow and traffic lightens. US 9W stays on a straight northward course, following alongside

Esopus Creek Esopus Creek is a tributary of the Hudson River that drains the east-central Catskill Mountains in the U.S. state of New York. From its source at Winnisook Lake on the slopes of Slide Mountain, the Catskills' highest peak, it flows across Ul ...

but not crossing it, until it veers northeast to merge, once again, with NY 32. This third concurrency finally brings the road over Esopus Creek and into the riverside village of Saugerties. Here, US 9W follows Partition Street and then Main Street when the routes part again, with NY 32 carrying NY 212 out of this junction. As Malden Avenue, the highway continues north alongside the river once again, passing through the hamlet of Malden-on-Hudson on its way up into Greene County.

Greene County and north

In Catskill, US 9W meets with NY 23A, then NY 385 at its southern terminus, and then, north, NY 23. In Coxsackie, US 9W meets this time with the northern terminus of NY 385, as well as the eastern terminus of

NY 81 New York State Route 81 (NY 81) is an east–west state highway in the Capital District of New York in the United States. The western terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 145 and Potter Hollow Road (unsigned NY&nb ...

. In West Coxsackie, US 9W meets with the

(

). Further north, the route meets NY 144, and in the village of

Ravena Ravena is a village in Albany County, New York, United States. The population was 3,271 in the 2020 census an increase of 3 over the 2010 census. The village is in the southeast part of the town of Coeymans. History The village of Ravena ...

, it meets NY 143. NY 396 meets US 9W in Selkirk. After briefly joining with NY 32 again, US 9W meets I-787 south of Albany. Immediately thereafter, NY 443 joins US 9W until Madison Avenue ( US 20), where NY 443 ends. US 9W, however, continues on, meeting with

NY 5 New York State Route 5 (NY 5) is a state highway that extends for across the state of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in the Chautauqua County town of Ripley and passes through Buffalo, Syra ...

(junction not signed on NY 5) before ending at US 9 ( Clinton Avenue).

History

Origins

In New York, much of what is now US 9W was designated as Route 3, an unsigned

legislative route In the United States, a legislative route (LR) or legislative highway is a highway defined by law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise d ...

, by the

New York State Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the Bicameralism, two houses that act as the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York: the New York State Senate and the New York State Assem ...

in 1908. The route extended from the

state line at Orangetown and went northward through the

Hudson Valley The Hudson Valley or Hudson River Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The region stretches from the Capital District (New York), Capital District includi ...

to the city of Albany. Route 3 broke from modern US 9W in several locations, mostly in areas where the route has since been moved onto bypasses. In Clarkstown, Route 3 veered west to serve

Congers Congers is a suburban hamlet and census-designated place in the town of Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York, United States. It is located north of Valley Cottage, east of New City, across Lake DeForest, south of Haverstraw, and west of the H ...

via Lake and Old Haverstraw Roads. From Highland Falls to Cornwall-on-Hudson, Route 3 followed modern NY 218 around Storm King Mountain. Lastly, Route 3 utilized current NY 385 between Catskill and Coxsackie. This route north of Route 3 was altered slightly on March 1, 1921, to bypass Congers on modern US 9W. When the first set of posted routes in New York were assigned in 1924, all of legislative Route 3 south of

was designated as part of NY 10. From Ravena to Albany, however, NY 10 followed a more easterly alignment along what is now NY 143, NY 144, and NY 32. This route had previously been signed as part of the West Shore Route auto trail north of Newburgh. The New Jersey segment of modern US 9W was originally designated as part of Route 18N in 1923, a route that ran from

Hoboken Hoboken ( ; ) is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's popula ...

to the

state line at

via Fort Lee. In the

1927 New Jersey state highway renumbering In 1927, New Jersey's state highways were renumbered. The old system, which had been defined in sequence by the legislature since 1916, was growing badly, as several routes shared the same number, and many unnumbered state highways had been ...

, Route 18N was truncated northward to Fort Lee. At the time, present-day County Route 501 (CR 501) north of Fort Lee was part of Route 1.State of New Jersey, Laws of 1927, Chapter 319. In 1929, Route 18N was supplanted by a realigned Route 1.ROUTE NO. 1. Alpine to Bayonne. Beginning at the New York state line on state highway route heretofore designated as Route No. 18--north in Alpine and terminating in Bayonne, by way of Alpine, Tenafly, Fort Lee and Ridgefield, in Bergen county, North Bergen, Jersey City and Bayonne, in Hudson county. L. 1929, c. 126, p. 215, s. 1. The Route 1 designation remained in place until the

1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering On January 1, 1953, the New Jersey Highway Department renumbered many of the State Routes. This renumbering was first proposed in 1951 in order to reduce confusion to motorists. A few rules were followed in deciding what to renumber: *No state ...

when it was removed to eliminate overlaps with several routes, including US 9W.

Designation

In the original 1925 plan for the U.S. Numbered Highway System, US 9 was designated along the west bank of the

from Fort Lee to Albany, utilizing Route 18N in New Jersey and NY 10 in New York. The alignment of US 9 in northern New Jersey and New York remained unchanged in the final system alignment approved on November 11, 1926. However, when US 9 was commissioned in 1927, it was split into two branches between

Bergen County, New Jersey Bergen County is the List of counties in New Jersey, most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Waterford, New York Waterford is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 8,208 at the 2020 census. The name of the town is derived from its principal village, also called Waterford. The town is located in the southeast corner of Sara ...

. The west branch began in Ridgefield and continued to the New York state line on modern Route 93 and CR 501, bypassing Fort Lee to the west. At the state line, the west branch of US 9 became US 9W and followed a short piece of what is now NY 340 to Sparkill. Past Sparkill, US 9W used what was originally planned as US 9 north to Waterford, utilizing modern NY 32 from Albany to Waterford. This edition shows U.S. Routes as they were first officially signed in 1927. The east branch of US 9 initially followed Route 5 east from Ridgefield to Edgewater, where it followed the Edgewater Ferry to the New York state line in the Hudson River. The branch resumed at the northern

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

line as US 9E and continued to Waterford on what is now US 9 and US 4 along the eastern side of the river. At Waterford, the two branches converged and continued north toward the

Canada–United States border The international border between Canada and the United States is the longest in the world by total length. The boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Canada' ...

as a unified US 9.

Early changes

The two branches of US 9 in New Jersey were altered several times over the next decade. At some point between 1927 and 1929, the west branch of US 9 was reconfigured in Bergen County to enter Fort Lee from the south on Palisade Avenue (current Route 67) and proceed north from Fort Lee to New York on Route 18N (later Route 1). The portion of US 9W in New York south of Sparkill was altered accordingly to meet the realigned US 9. In the early 1930s, the east branch of US 9 was shifted southward to reach New York via modern Route 139 and the

Holland Tunnel The Holland Tunnel is a vehicular tunnel under the Hudson River that connects Hudson Square and Lower Manhattan in New York City in the east to Jersey City, New Jersey, in the west. The tunnel is operated by the Port Authority of New York an ...

while the west branch of the route was realigned to follow what is now US 1/9 between the

Tonnele Circle The Tonnele Circle is an intersection in Jersey City, New Jersey, United States. It is named after Tonnele TUN-uh-lee"Avenue, the north–south road that runs through it. Entrances and exits Entrances to and exits from Tonnele Circle are liste ...

and Fort Lee. US 9W was extended southward into New Jersey , replacing the west branch of US 9. US 9 was rerouted to follow US 9W and the

to New York; as a result, US 9W was cut back to its current southern terminus in Fort Lee. In the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York, US 9W was truncated southward to end in Albany while US 9E was redesignated as just US 9 and reconfigured to bypass Waterford to the west in favor of a direct alignment between Albany and Round Lake.''Automobile Legal Association (ALA) Automobile Green Book'', 1930–31 and 1931–32 editions, (Scarborough Motor Guide Co., Boston, 1930 and 1931). The 1930–31 edition shows New York state routes prior to the 1930 renumbering At the same time, US 9W was realigned through New Baltimore and Coeymans to use modern NY 144 instead. The portion of what is now US 9W from New Baltimore to Albany was originally designated as NY 144 as part of the 1930 renumbering while the segment from Catskill to Coxsackie was assigned NY 385 . The alignments of US 9W and NY 385 were swapped by the following year while the routings of US 9W and NY 144 were flipped in April 1935.

Bypasses

In the early 1930s, plans were made by the state of New York to construct a new highway between the

and Cornwall-on-Hudson that would bypass both Cornwall-on-Hudson and Highland Falls and bypass the narrow Storm King Highway, US 9W's original routing between the two. On April 8, 1934, three people were killed by a rockslide on the Storm King Highway, expediting plans for the new highway, known as the Storm King Cutoff. The southernmost of the highway—from the bridge to just north of Fort Montgomery—utilized the existing right-of-way of US 9W, which was widened from two to four lanes and straightened through the construction of rock cuts. Construction on this segment was completed in 1937. The portion of the bypass from Fort Montgomery to Cornwall-on-Hudson, with the exception of a stretch northwest of Highland Falls, was constructed on a new alignment. It was built with four lanes and constructed along the sides of Storm King Mountain and other, smaller hills in the area. The high elevation of the roadway gave rise to a bevy of scenic, panoramic views that stretched for several miles into the distance; as a result, a fifth lane was added in some areas to allow motorists to stop and view the scenery. Like the section south of Fort Montgomery, the stretch that utilized the original US 9W was widened to four lanes as well. Several interchanges were built along the route, including with NY 293 and NY 307. The cutoff was opened to traffic from Fort Montgomery to NY 293 sometime in 1939 or 1940 and to Angola Road ( CR 9) on September 26, 1940. The last section, from Angola Road north to Blooming Grove Turnpike north of Cornwall-on-Hudson, was opened to traffic on May 31, 1941. US 9W was realigned to follow the cutoff while its old route via the Storm King Highway became NY 218. Bypasses have also been proposed or constructed in other locations. In

, US 9W was originally routed on Wurts Street, McEntee Street, Broadway, and East Chester Street. An easterly bypass of the city between Wurts Street and NY 32 was constructed in the late 1970s and completed as a realignment of US 9W by 1981. The portion of US 9W's former alignment south of Abeel Street in Kingston became NY 984D, an unsigned reference route. In Albany, the north end of US 9W and part of US 9 would have been rerouted onto a proposed limited-access highway called the Mid-Crosstown Arterial. The project was eventually canceled.

Major intersections

References

External links

An enlarged view of road jurisdiction at the Fort Lee approaches to the George Washington Bridge
(

PDF Portable document format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe Inc., Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, computer hardware, ...

)
New Jersey Roads: US 9WUS 9W @ NYS Thruway Exit 10 (Empire State Roads.com)US 9W @ NYS Thruway Exit 11 (Empire State Roads.com)Capital Highways -- Mid-Crosstown ArterialPolice Scanner Frequencies for Route 9WSpeed Limits for Route 9W in New Jersey
{{DEFAULTSORT:U.S. Route 009w Transportation in Bergen County, New Jersey Transportation in Rockland County, New York Transportation in Orange County, New York 09W 09W 09W Hudson River Limited-access roads in New York (state) Transportation in Ulster County, New York Transportation in Greene County, New York Transportation in Albany County, New York