U.S. Route 9W is a
U.S. Highway which runs from
Interstate 95,
U.S. Routes 1 and 9,
US-46, and the
Palisades Interstate Parkway at the foot of the
George Washington Bridge in
Fort Lee,
New Jersey up the west side of the
Hudson River to terminate at its parent,
U.S. Route 9, again in
Albany, New York.
Route description
For much of its length, Route 9W is a two-lane surface road. However, some stretches in 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
Heading north from
Fort Lee, US 9W occupies the right-of-way of the
Palisades Interstate Parkway to Lemoine Avenue, the northern terminus of
Route 67. US 9W exits the expressway, turning north onto Lemoine Avenue, later Sylvan Avenue, where it passes the headquarters of
CNBC. It continues to parallel the PIP to its west as they progress northward along the west bank of the
Hudson River. Both roads run very near the top of the
Palisades, occasionally offering views of New York City and the river.
Lemoine is heavy with commercial development at the Fort Lee end, but as the road runs into
Englewood Cliffs and into the affluent community of
Alpine in the state's northeastern corner, it becomes more residential. Near
Norwood, just south of the state line, Route 9W crosses under the parkway and enters New York.
New York
Rockland County
Across the state line, US 9W continues in
Palisades, New York as Highland Avenue, a two-lane road through mostly residential suburban surroundings. It passes
Columbia University's
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory 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
Interstate 87/
287 (
New York State Thruway) 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 and then
the eponymous state park.
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 eastern 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, where
US 202 comes in at an oblique angle and joins 9W, creating the first
concurrency along the route.
Route 9W climbing mountains in northern Rockland County.
The combined highways head north from the Haverstraws as South, then North, Liberty Drive, passing
Stony Point Battlefield. They return to the Hudson at Tomkins Cove, just across from the
Indian Point Energy Center. Here the road curves and bends above the river as it works its way around
Dunderberg Mountain, the southernmost peak of the
Hudson Highlands and part of
Bear Mountain State Park.
At Jones Point, it levels out again briefly and then 9W/202 climb to the heart of the state park at Bear Mountain Inn and
Hessian Lake, where the
Appalachian Trail crosses beneath the road in the only man-made tunnel along its entire route. The
Orange County line is crossed just before Bear Mountain Circle.
Orange County
US 9W, shown at the Bear Mountain Circle in Fort Montgomery
The circle marks the northern terminus of the Palisades Parkway and the junction with
US 6. 202 leaves 9W to join Route 6 here and cross the
Bear Mountain Bridge.
North of the circle, US 9W continues as an undivided four-lane road, crossing
Popolopen Creek and affording a spectacular view 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.
A half-mile (1 km) further north,
NY 218, the former route of 9W, forks off to the right, carrying traffic to
Highland Falls and the
United States Military Academy at
West Point. At this point 9W becomes a divided
limited-access highway as it starts to climb the highlands above the village and the academy. The first exit is Route 218, which joins 9W for a mile just north of the village. It leaves the highway at the northern terminus of
NY 293 to run alongside
Storm King Mountain.
Route 9W winding through the Hudson Highlands
From here, 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 the chance to stop and take it all in, 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. Just outside the village of
Cornwall-on-Hudson and the fields of
New York Military Academy, NY 218 ends its loop. Shortly afterwards, the division ends and grade intersections resume, although the road remains four lanes as it enters the
Town of New Windsor.
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 and into
Newburgh, it is Robinson Avenue, a wide urban arterial with parking along the sides.
It ascends gently past
Delano-Hitch Stadium 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 9W.
Downing Park in the city of Newburgh
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 the
Frederick Law Olmsted-designed
Downing Park. The road's climb continues until North Junior High School, where it starts to descend to the busy exit at
Interstate 84, 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 9W continues northwards. It passes
Powelton Country Club, part of the affluent community of
Balmville, the first of several within the
Town of Newburgh that 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
woodlots and finally, in the northern reaches of the town,
orchards. At Roseton, past the access road to the nearby power plants, 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, but otherwise there is little change in Route 9W until it widens to four lanes again just south of the
Mid-Hudson Bridge approach overpass. At this point,
US 44 and
NY 55 join the highway from the east. The road becomes a busy commercial strip for the next mile to the concurrency's end, where 44 and 55 go down into
Highland. The four lanes continue, however, for several more miles until it reaches the eastern terminus of
NY 299, the road that carries traffic west toward the Thruway and
New Paltz.
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 via the
John T. Loughran Bridge and becoming Frank Koenig Boulevard.
Route 9W entering Kingston.
It runs right through Kingston this way and meets NY 32 again at the city's northern boundary. Turning left, 9W's second concurrency with 32 is only 500 feet (151 m) 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,
US 209 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 but not crossing it, until it veers northeast to merge, once again, with NY 32.
This third concurrency finally brings the road over the Esopus and into the riverside village of
Saugerties. Here 9W follows Main Street when the routes part again, with 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, 9W meets with
NY-23A, then
NY-385 at its southern terminus, then a mile north,
NY-23.
In
Coxsackie, 9W meets this time with the northern terminus of NY-385, as well as the eastern terminus of
NY-81. In
West Coxsackie, 9W meets with the
New York State Thruway(
I-87), then a little bit further north,
NY-144, then
NY-143.
NY-396 meets 9W in
Selkirk. After briefly joining with NY-32 again, 9W meets
Interstate 787 south of Albany. Immediately thereafter,
NY-443 joins 9W until Madison Avenue (
US 20), where NY-443 ends. US 9W, however, continues on, meeting with
NY-5 (junction not signed on NY-5) before meeting
US-9 at
Clinton Avenue, US-9W's northern end.
Major intersections
New Jersey
New York
- Palisades Interstate Parkway/US 6/202
