page_title: Interstate 86 (Pennsylvania–New York)
section_title: Southern Tier Expressway
hierarchical_section_title: Interstate 86 (Pennsylvania–New York) / History / Southern Tier Expressway
caption_attribution_description: Photographed by Daniel Case 2006-07-31.
context_page_description: Interstate 86 is an Interstate Highway that extends for 222.26 miles through northwestern Pennsylvania and southern New York in the United States. The highway has two segments: the longer of the two begins at an interchange with I-90 east of Erie, Pennsylvania, and ends just beyond the Chemung-Tioga County line at the Pennsylvania border, while the second extends from I-81 east of Binghamton to New York State Route 79 in Windsor. When projects to upgrade the existing NY 17 to Interstate Highway standards are completed, I-86 will extend from I-90 near Erie to the New York State Thruway in Woodbury. The current and future alignment of I-86 is known as the Southern Tier Expressway west of I-81 in Binghamton and the Quickway east of I-81.
  I-86 travels 7.00 miles in Pennsylvania and 215.26 miles in New York. Except for a section of about 1.5 miles that dips into Pennsylvania at exit 60 near the New York village of Waverly and the Pennsylvania borough of South Waverly, the rest of I-86 will be in New York. The section of NY 17 through South Waverly is maintained by the New York State Department of Transportation, however.
context_section_description: In February 1953, New York Governor Thomas Dewey proposed constructing four superhighways across the state to supplement the New York State Thruway. One of the four proposed limited-access highways would cut across the Southern Tier, linking I-90 in the west to Binghamton in the east. The first segments of what became known as the Southern Tier Expressway, a westward continuation of the Quickway, were completed in the mid-1960s. Four sections were opened to traffic at this time: Kennedy (exit 14) to Randolph (16); Coldspring (17) to western Salamanca (20); Campbell (41) to Corning (45); and East Corning (48) to Lowman (57), parts of which were built as a surface highway. The Coldspring to Salamanca section was built out of necessity: in 1967, the first stress test of the Kinzua Dam had submerged part of the original NY 17 into the Allegheny Reservoir and made it impassable. Construction of the new highway destroyed most of the town of Red House.
  A fifth section, from Owego (65) to Johnson City (69), opened in early 1969. The portion of the expressway between Nichols (exit 62) and Owego was opened to traffic on October 3, 1969.
  Four more segments of the Southern Tier Expressway were completed over the course of the next three years. By 1972, the gaps between Randolph and Coldspring and from Johnson City to I-81 in Binghamton were filled while the expressway was extended west from Kennedy to Falconer (exit 13) and east from Lowman to Waverly (exit 60). The missing link between Waverly and Nichols was completed by 1974. The portion of the freeway in and around Waverly was originally planned to be built on the right-of-way of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad through southern Waverly; however, the plan was scrapped in favor of a more southerly alignment that passed through the borough of South Waverly, Pennsylvania. The realignment saved $2 million (equivalent to $12.6 million in 2020) in construction costs and spared a handful of industries in the highway's proposed path. Both state legislatures approved the realignment in 1966 after New York agreed to maintain the section of the freeway in Pennsylvania. As part of an agreement made between the two states, Pennsylvania acquired the necessary right-of-way and easements for the freeway at the expense of New York.
  Three other segments of the freeway were completed by 1974. Two of the three—from Jamestown (exit 11) and Falconer and between Almond (33) and Campbell—were extensions of pre-existing sections while the third, connecting Allegany (24) to Hinsdale (27), was isolated from the other portions of the highway. This was only temporary, however, as the freeway was completed between Hinsdale and Belvidere (exit 30) by January 1975 and opened to traffic from Belvidere to Almond on January 30, 1975. The Southern Tier Expressway was extended westward to Bemus Point by 1977, initially utilizing what is now NY 954J. In the early 1980s, work began on a westward extension to the vicinity of Erie, Pennsylvania. The Findley Lake–Bemus Point (exits 4–10) segment was completed by 1985 while the portion from I-90 east of Erie to Findley Lake was opened by 1989. From I-90 to exit 8, the freeway was initially built as a super two highway, with both directions utilizing what are now the eastbound lanes. The westbound lanes were built at a cost of $34 million (equivalent to $54.2 million in 2020) and opened to traffic on October 2, 1997.
caption: Sign along eastbound NY 17 (future I-86) marking return to New York after its brief foray into Pennsylvania.
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