Interstate 81 in New York
Interstate 81 is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs from I-40 at Dandridge, Tennessee, to the Thousand Islands Bridge at Wellesley Island in New York, beyond which the short Ontario Highway 137 links it to Highway 401. In the US state of New York, I-81 extends from the Pennsylvania state line southeast of Binghamton to the Canadian border at Wellesley Island northwest of Alexandria Bay. The freeway runs north–south through Central New York, serving the cities of Binghamton, Syracuse, and Watertown. It passes through the Thousand Islands in its final miles and crosses two bridges, both part of the series of bridges known as the Thousand Islands Bridge.
South of Watertown, I-81 closely parallels US Route 11, the main north–south highway in Central New York prior to the construction of I-81. At Watertown, US 11 turns northeastward to head across New York's North Country region while I-81 continues on a generally northward track to the Canadian border. From there, the road continues into the province of Ontario as Highway 137, a short route leading north to the nearby Highway 401.
The portion of I-81 in New York was originally developed as the Penn-Can Highway, one of four expressways proposed by the state in 1953. It was added to the Interstate Highway System and designated I-81 in 1957 and constructed in sections over the course of the next decade. The first segment was completed in the mid-1950s, running from Tully to the southern edge of Syracuse. The last piece opened in the late 1960s, linking Marathon to Whitney Point.
Route description
Southern Tier
I-81 crosses the New York–Pennsylvania border about southeast of the city of Binghamton. The freeway heads northwest from the state line, running through a valley surrounding the Susquehanna River in the town of Kirkwood. This stretch of I-81 closely parallels US 11, continuing a trend that originally began at I-81's southern terminus in eastern Tennessee. Both roads head across relatively undeveloped areas along the eastern riverbank to the outskirts of Binghamton, where I-81 merges with I-86 in an industrial area east of the city. I-81 and I-86 overlap for, running along the northern edge of the Binghamton suburbs before entering the city itself. About north of downtown, the freeway connects to Brandywine Highway, a limited-access road carrying NY 7 through mostly residential areas on the north side of the city.Just west of the Brandywine Highway junction, I-81 and I-86 cross the Chenango River as they split at a directional T interchange comprising part of an S-curve in I-86 known locally as Kamikaze Curve. While I-86 heads west into the curve, I-81 proceeds northward along the west bank of the river, connecting to US 11 and passing by SUNY Broome on its way into the suburban town of Chenango. Here, I-81 meets the western terminus of I-88 at a junction roughly north of Binghamton. Continuing on, the freeway intersects US 11 a second time before leaving the banks of the Susquehanna River and proceeding generally northwestward into increasingly rural areas of the Southern Tier. The route makes its way across a series of hills and valleys for to the village of Whitney Point, connecting to US 11 and two state routes of regional importance—NY 26 and NY 79—at two exits on the western edge of the community.
Continuing on, I-81 begins to follow the Tioughnioga River, a tributary of the Susquehanna, as it bypasses the nearby village of Lisle to the east. While US 11 runs across the base of a valley flanking the river, the freeway proceeds along the valley's eastern edge, overlooking the valley road on its way to the Broome–Cortland county line. Both routes cross the border at points just yards apart, beginning their transition from the Southern Tier region to Central New York. About from the county line, I-81 encounters the village of Marathon, situated inside the river valley at the junction of US 11 and NY 221. The freeway connects to the latter at an interchange just east of the village center before heading northwestward for across a series of moraines in another prolonged rural stretch. Along the way, I-81 passes between the Tuller Hill and Hoxie Gorge state forests, located near Messengerville on the western and eastern sides of the highway, respectively.
Cortland to Syracuse
The rural, northwestward trend ends west of the village of McGraw at a junction with NY 41, the primary east–west road through the community. NY 41 continues west from the exit for a short distance to meet US 11, and the two routes become concurrent for the next. I-81, US 11, and NY 41 all head westward from this point, passing a handful of scattered businesses to reach the eastern edge of the nearby city of Cortland. While US 11 and NY 41 continue directly into the city, I-81 bypasses it to the northeast. As such, it crosses only moderately developed areas on the periphery of Cortland. The road connects to downtown Cortland by way of an exit with NY 13, a north–south route serving most of Central New York. Near the exit, the Tioughnioga River splits into two branches, with NY 13 following the east branch to the northeast and I-81 proceeding westward along the west branch.North of downtown Cortland, I-81 makes a 90-degree turn to the north, matching a similar curve in the course of the nearby river. This track brings the freeway to the suburban village of Homer, which I-81 connects to via exit 54. The trumpet interchange feeds into a long east–west ramp linking the highway to the parallel US 11, NY 41, and NY 281, another parallel road farther west. NY 41 leaves US 11 in Homer, and I-81, US 11, and NY 281 proceed slightly northeastward across a low-lying, undeveloped area in an otherwise hilly region of Cortland County. Just south of the Onondaga County line, I-81 directly meets NY 281 as it crosses from the western side of the freeway to the eastern edge. They meet one final time across the county line near the village of Tully, where NY 281 ends as I-81 intersects NY 80 and NY 11A. The west branch of the Tioughnioga River also terminates here, flowing into Tully Lake at the county line.
The amount of development along the freeway slowly increases as it heads north through the county. In LaFayette, I-81 meets with US 20, one of a handful of east–west roads spanning the width of the state. Continuing on, I-81 and US 11 pass east of Onondaga Reservation, connecting once again at exit 78 before entering the city of Syracuse. At this point, the forests that had lined both roads give way to the dense residential neighborhoods that comprise the city's southern half. Roughly south of Downtown Syracuse, I-81 meets with I-481, an alternate route of I-81 bypassing the city to the east. I-81 itself proceeds due north toward downtown on an embankment, running alongside the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway and passing adjacent to Oakwood Cemetery. The surrounding area transitions from mostly residential to mostly commercial at the north edge of the cemetery, where I-81 passes west of the campuses of Syracuse University and State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.
Syracuse and Oswego County
West of Syracuse University, the NYSW turns west to pass under I-81. At this point, the embankment gives way to an elevated highway carrying I-81 through downtown right next to the State University of New York Upstate Medical University. The road separates the 15th Ward on its west side from Syracuse University and the area's hospitals on its east side; it also visually hangs over the predominantly residential 15th Ward. Farther north, the density of the commercial districts adjacent to the highway continue to increase as the road enters Downtown Syracuse. For roughly a half-mile, I-81 heads east–west, running alongside I-690 and connecting to the highway by way of a series of closely spaced ramps. Like I-81, the incomplete interchange is entirely elevated, passing over parts of several downtown blocks. Past I-690, I-81 transitions from an elevated road to a subsurface highway as it cuts across the north half of downtown and proceeds northwest past an old industrial area that was once Syracuse's Inner Harbor. The elevated portion in Syracuse was expected to reach the end of its useful life in 2017 but remains in service.Image:I 81 elevated.jpg|thumb|right|Below the elevated section of I-81 in Downtown Syracuse
The cut eventually brings the freeway to the southeastern tip of Onondaga Lake, where I-81 ascends in elevation once again at a network of interchanges with NY 370 and a handful of nearby streets. The series of junctions serve Destiny USA, the area's largest mall; NBT Bank Stadium, the home of the Syracuse Mets; and the William F. Walsh Regional Transportation Center, Syracuse's bus and train station. I-81 subsequently passes over CSX Transportation's Mohawk Subdivision rail line, which serves the RTC. North of the rail overpass, the road finally returns to ground level as it heads northeastward through Syracuse's residential northern suburbs. In Salina, I-81 meets the New York State Thruway at exit 7 and connects to Syracuse Hancock International Airport at exit 9. About north of downtown, the highway enters the village of North Syracuse, where I-481 rejoins I-81 at exit 11.
While I-481 continues northwest from North Syracuse as NY 481, I-81 travels north through residential areas of gradually decreasing density. Just north of the junction with I-481 and NY 481, the freeway passes east of the former Penn-Can Mall, the largest commercial parcel in the area. I-81's first junction north of Syracuse is in the town of Cicero, where it connects to NY 31, another regionally important highway. North of here, US 11 begins to closely parallel I-81 once again, rejoining the highway's vicinity after following an erratic alignment through Syracuse. The two roads run across relatively flat and increasingly undeveloped land to Brewerton, a hamlet adjacent to where Oneida Lake empties into the Oneida River. While US 11 runs through the community, I-81 bypasses it to the east, offering unobstructed views of the lake as it crosses the lake outlet and enters Oswego County.
On the opposite riverbank, I-81 initially runs past a line of lakefront houses and cottages; however, it soon enters a large marshy area named Big Bay Swamp. The wetlands reach as far north as Central Square, a village just west of I-81's interchange with NY 49. For most of the next, I-81 runs north across a mixture of swamps and fields, both undeveloped and fairly level in elevation. Along this stretch, the freeway links to two more major routes: NY 69 and NY 104. The highway eventually reaches the village of Pulaski, where it reconnects to NY 13 at a partial interchange east of the village center. From here to Watertown, I-81 loosely parallels Lake Ontario, located about to the west and more closely followed by NY 3. Another substantial stretch of open, rolling fields brings the route to Sandy Creek, where it connects to County Route 15, a highway designated NY 288 during the 1930s.