Kathleen Joyce
No, this is not Harry Potter’s world; we can’t just push a button and fly the car. If only we could. Yet there are ways to get to school faster, and by that I don’t mean speeding, because during traffic, it’s impossible to speed unless you make your own lane. But whether you’re coming from the east, west, north or south, the specific route you take is the one that could get you to class on time, and we all know how important that is.
I’ll talk about my route first, since it’s the one I know best. I have avoided parkways at all costs for the past four years. I take side streets. I go to Old Country Road to Glen Cove Road and then take that down to Northern Boulevard. Eight out of ten times Glen Cove Road and Northern Boulevard are free from traffic. For those coming from out on the Island such as Wading River, Ronkonkoma, Brentwood, Central Islip, and Lindenhurst, the best route would be to go on the Long Island Expressway. I prefer the L.I.E. to the Northern State, since you can take the Northern State to the 135 then to the L.I.E (it’s complicated). The L.I.E. is the only parkway that will get you to Glen Cove Road and then to Northern Boulevard.
Westchester is a fantastic area I’m not at all familiar with, but I do know you need to take a bridge, the Throgs Neck to be exact. Those who have to travel from Westchester should have an EZ-Pass, so you don’t need to wait in line. After the Throgs Neck, you’ll take the Clearview Expressway to I-495, otherwise known as the L.I.E. There really aren’t other ways to get to school from Westchester, unless you have a boat! From Queens, you can just take the L.I.E. and follow that down to Glen Cove Road. I like to get to the L.I.E. from the Cross Island Parkway or the Belt, which eventually turns into the Cross Island. The Brooklyn-Queens Expressway always has traffic or roadwork going on, which makes the commute slower. The Cross Island, while slow in the morning, is a faster commute.
These are just a few routes. I know the I-495 is basically the route to take, but I find the L.I.E. is very commuter friendly. While it is a dangerous road, it has the most lanes and a HOV lane, which allows you to travel faster if you carpool. And carpooling is an excellent way to keep it eco-friendly and an even faster route. Whatever route you may take, or whatever route you feel the most comfortable with, always drive safely and set a timed schedule, just in case you hit that pesky traffic.
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