# Grand Central Parkway

The Grand Central Parkway (GCP) is a 14.61-mile (23.51 km) controlled-access parkway that stretches from the Triborough Bridge in New York City to the Queens–Nassau County line on Long Island. At the Nassau County line, it becomes the Northern State Parkway, which runs across the northern part of Long Island into Suffolk County, where it ends in Hauppauge. The westernmost stretch (from the RFK Bridge to the BQE) also carries a short stretch of Interstate 278 (I-278). The parkway runs through Queens and passes the Cross Island Parkway, Long Island Expressway, LaGuardia Airport and Citi Field, home of the New York Mets. The parkway is designated New York State Route 907M (NY 907M), an unsigned reference route. Despite its name, the Grand Central Parkway was not named after Grand Central Terminal.
The Grand Central Parkway has a few unique distinctions. It is only one of four parkways in New York State to carry an elliptical black-on-white design for its trailblazer, the others being the Henry Hudson Parkway, the Jackie Robinson Parkway, and the Cross Island Parkway, all in New York City. Other parkways in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island use the state-standard design, while the Belt-system parkways use a modified version of the Long Island regional parkway shield with the Montauk Point Lighthouse logo. In addition, it is one of the few parkways in the state to allow truck traffic to any extent. The section shared with I-278 allows for all trucks under 14 feet (4.3 m) high.

## Route description

The Grand Central Parkway begins at the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge overlapped with I-278 in the Astoria section of Queens. After an interchange with 31st Street (I-278 exit 45); the parkway runs concurrently with I-278 for 0.80 mi (1.29 km) before the latter splits off onto the Brooklyn–Queens Expressway at exit 4, where all commercial traffic must exit.
The parkway proceeds east past St. Michaels Cemetery, entering exit 5, which serves 82nd Street and Astoria Boulevard in East Elmhurst, also connecting to the Marine Air Terminal and Terminal A of LaGuardia Airport. After crossing over 82nd Street and Ditmars Boulevard, the parkway enters the airport area, passing south of runway 4-22. During the reconstruction of the LaGuardia terminals, construction has been heavy in the vicinity of exits 6 and 7. As currently configured, eastbound exit 6 is an interchange with 94th Street while exit 7 forks northward on a ramp to the airport's terminals B, C and D. On the westbound side, exit 7 provides access to terminals C and D while exit 6 serves terminal B (in addition to 94th Street). After exit 7, the Grand Central bends southeast and away from LaGuardia Airport, paralleling the Long Island Sound into the eastbound only exit 8, which serves 111th Street.
Entering the Corona section of Queens, the Grand Central enters exit 9, which serves NY 25A (Northern Boulevard) and the Whitestone Expressway just west of Citi Field. The Grand Central then proceeds south, crossing under the Long Island Rail Road's Port Washington Branch and soon into Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. Through the park, the parkway passes west of Arthur Ashe Stadium, the Queens Zoo and the Unisphere before entering exit 10, a cloverleaf interchange with the Long Island Expressway (I-495). Soon crossing into Forest Hills, the parkway continues through Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, passing Meadow Lake, entering exit 11, connecting to 69th Road and Jewel Avenue in [in Forest Hills]. After that interchange, the parkway bends southeast through Forest Hills, passing Willow Lake and exit 12, which connects to NY 25 (Queens Boulevard) via 78th Avenue.
The Grand Central continues its bend, now proceeding eastward over Jamaica Yard, entering the Kew Gardens Interchange (exits 13, 14 and 15), connecting I-678 (the Van Wyck Expressway), Union Turnpike and the Jackie Robinson Parkway in Kew Gardens. After the Kew Gardens Interchange, the Grand Central Parkway continues east into the Briarwood section of Queens, where exit 16 connects to Parsons Boulevard via a service road. After crossing through the developed neighborhood of Briarwood, the parkway enters Jamaica Hills, passing south of Queens Hospital near 164th Street. Proceeding westbound, an exit (exit 17) is present, connecting to 168th Street, while eastbound, exit 18 connects the Grand Central to Utopia Parkway.
At the interchange with Utopia Parkway, the Grand Central passes south of St. John's University, soon winding northeast into exit 19, which serves 188th Street in Jamaica Estates. After exit 19, the parkway winds eastward into Cunningham Park, where it enters exit 20, which serves Francis Lewis Boulevard and exit 21, which connects to the Clearview Expressway (I-295) and its southern terminus. The parkway leaves Cunningham Park, entering the Bellerose section of Queens, entering exit 22, which connects to Union Turnpike via Stronghurst Avenue. The route then enters Alley Pond Park, where it interchanges with the Cross Island Parkway and Winchester Boulevard. After the interchange, the Grand Central passes west of Creedmoor Hospital, winding northeast into exit 24, which serves Little Neck Parkway before winding northeast to the Nassau County line in Little Neck. At this crossing, the parkway changes names to the Northern State Parkway, which continues east towards Hauppauge.

## History

The Grand Central Parkway was first proposed in 1922, as a scenic drive along the high ground of east-central Queens. By the time construction began in 1931, it had been reconceived as extending northwestward to the Triborough Bridge, then in the planning stages, and connecting on the east with the Northern State Parkway, also in the planning stages, thereby among other things providing an easier route from the bridge to Jones Beach. The parkway was widened in 1961 in preparation for the 1964 New York World's Fair in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park.
In 2010 construction began at Kew Gardens Interchange to improve traffic congestion. Formerly, the frontage road of the Grand Central between BQE and the RFK Bridge served as a truck route, since large trucks were not permitted on the parkway. Exemptions were provided for smaller trucks that conform with strict regulations on the section of the Grand Central that overlapped with I-278. In December 2017, the state concluded a $2.5 million project that lowered the roadbed of the section of the parkway that is concurrent with I-278. This section of I-278 now has a 14-foot (4.3 m) vertical clearance, which allows most trucks to stay on I-278.

## Exit list

| County | Location | mi | km | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
| Queens | Astoria | 0.00 | 0.00 | – | I-278 Toll east (RFK Bridge) – Manhattan, Bronx, Randalls Island | Continuation east; western end of I-278 concurrency |
| Queens | Astoria | 0.00 | 0.00 | 45 | 31st Street / Astoria Boulevard | No westbound access to Astoria Boulevard |
| Queens | Astoria | 0.80 | 1.29 | 4 | I-278 west (Brooklyn–Queens Expressway) – Brooklyn, Staten Island | Eastern end of I-278 concurrency; eastbound exit and westbound entrance; all trucks must exit; exit number not signed |
| Queens | East Elmhurst | 1.34 | 2.16 | 4 | To I-278 west (Brooklyn–Queens Expressway) – Brooklyn, Staten Island | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance |
| Queens | East Elmhurst | 1.34 | 2.16 | 5 | Astoria Boulevard / 82nd Street – Terminal A | |
| Queens | East Elmhurst | 2.26 | 3.64 | 6 | 94th Street – Terminal B Parking | No westbound exit |
| Queens | East Elmhurst | 2.51 | 4.04 | 7 | LaGuardia Airport – Terminals B and C | |
| Queens | East Elmhurst | 3.55 | 5.71 | 8 | 111th Street | Eastbound exit only |
| Queens | Corona | 3.79 | 6.10 | 9 | NY 25A (Northern Boulevard) / Whitestone Expressway north to I-678 | Signed as exits 9W (NY 25A west) and 9E (NY 25A east/Whitestone); no eastbound access to NY 25A west; exits 13B-C on Whitestone Expy. |
| Queens | Flushing Meadows–Corona Park | 4.39 | 7.07 | 9P | Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, BJK Tennis Center | Access via Shea Road; no eastbound exit |
| Queens | Flushing Meadows–Corona Park | 5.10 | 8.21 | 10 | I-495 (Long Island Expressway) – Manhattan, Eastern Long Island | Signed as exits 10W (west) and 10E (east); exits 22A-B on I-495 |
| Queens | Flushing Meadows–Corona Park | 5.94 | 9.56 | 11 | 69th Road / Jewel Avenue | Signed as exits 11W (west) and 11E (east) westbound |
| Queens | Flushing Meadows–Corona Park | 6.50 | 10.46 | 12 | To NY 25 (Queens Boulevard) / 78th Avenue | Eastbound exit only |
| Queens | Kew Gardens Hills | 7.19 | 11.57 | 13 | I-678 south (Van Wyck Expressway) – Kennedy Airport | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; exit 10 on I-678 |
| Queens | Kew Gardens Hills | 7.53 | 12.12 | 14 | Jackie Robinson Parkway west / Union Turnpike to NY 25 west (Queens Boulevard) – Brooklyn | Signed as exits 14 (Parkway) and 15 (Union) westbound; no westbound access to Union Turnpike east; NY 25 not signed eastbound |
| Queens | Briarwood | 8.11 | 13.05 | 16 | Parsons Boulevard / 164th Street | Eastbound exit only |
| Queens | Jamaica Hills–Hillcrest line | 8.64 | 13.90 | 17 | Parsons Boulevard / 168th Street to I-678 south (Van Wyck Expressway) | Westbound exit only |
| Queens | Jamaica Hills–Hillcrest line | 9.13 | 14.69 | 18 | Utopia Parkway | No westbound exit |
| Queens | Jamaica Estates–Holliswood line | 9.83 | 15.82 | 19 | 188th Street | |
| Queens | Cunningham Park | 10.57– 10.86 | 17.01– 17.48 | 20 | Francis Lewis Boulevard | Signed as exits 20A (north) and 20B (south) |
| Queens | Cunningham Park | 11.10 | 17.86 | 21 | I-295 north (Clearview Expressway) / NY 24 east / NY 25 (Hillside Avenue) to I-495 – Bronx | NYC's only stack interchange; NY 24 not signed; exit 1 on I-295 |
| Queens | Bellerose | 11.93 | 19.20 | 22 | Union Turnpike | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; former NY 25C |
| Queens | Glen Oaks | 12.56 | 20.21 | 23 | Cross Island Parkway / Winchester Boulevard to I-495 / Union Turnpike | No westbound access to Winchester Boulevard; no eastbound access to Union Turnpike; exits 29E-W on Cross Island Parkway |
| Queens | Little Neck | 13.67 | 22.00 | 24 | Little Neck Parkway | |
| Queens–Nassau county line | Little Neck–Lake Success line | 14.61 | 23.51 | – | Northern State Parkway east – Eastern Long Island | Continuation east |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi Concurrency terminus Electronic toll collection Incomplete access |||||||