Traveling from Haverhill ma to Lancaster pa. (Medford, Reading: living, dangerous)

[ahalls3318]

Looking to travel from
Haverhill ma to Lancaster pa without going over the George Washington bridge
And New York / New York City.

[KemBro71]

Originally Posted by ahalls3318

Looking to travel from
Haverhill ma to Lancaster pa without going over the George Washington bridge
And New York / New York City.

495 to the Pike to 84 and so on gets you past NYC without the GW.

[2nd trick op]

I-495 to I-90/84 West
I-84 diverges near Sturbridge,MA
I-84 to I-87 South at Newburgh, NY (through Hartford)
I-87 (NY Thruway) to I-287 South near Mahwah, NJ
I-287 to I-78 West at Bedminster, NJ
I-78 to PA 222 on west side of Allentown
(PA 222 is mostly limited-access / interstate grade)
PA 222 to Lancaster (via Reading)

[jayrandom]

If you like living dangerously you could try the Merritt Expressway to the Tappen Zee

495->290
290->90
90->84
84->81
81->CT15 (Merritt)
CT15->287
287->78
78->PA 222
PA 222 -> Lancaster

If you want to play it safe, try the Newburgh, which would be:
495->290
290->90
90->84
87->287
287->78
78->PA 222
PA 222 -> Lancaster

And if you want to play it really safe, try this:
495->290
290->90
90->87
87->287
287->78
78->PA 222
PA 222 -> Lancaster

I regularly make the trip from Westwood to New Hope and take similar routes (I stay on 287 to 202, rather than divert over to 78/222). With kids, it reduces stress from not having to deal with CT is worth the extra 30 minutes (theoretical) and tolls from taking 90-287. It's honestly rare that I don't end up burning those 30 minutes stuck in traffic on the Merritt when I go that way. Maybe I have terrible luck.

I would never make the trip without an active traffic monitoring app (I use Waze). The best route WILL depend on the exact traffic, which will probably be different now than it will when you leave and will even change between Haverhill and Lancaster.

Good luck. Enjoy a pretzel for me!

[OutdoorLover]

I drive from Newburyport, MA to Medford, NJ a lot, and I take:

- I495S -> 290W
- 290W -> I-90W
- I-90W -> I-84W
- I-84W -> 684S
- 684S -> Sawmill River Parkway
- Sawmill River Parkway -> 287W and the Tappan Zee Bridge

Then I take the Palisades Parkway south to the NJ Turnpike South. This might still be the best for you, if you get off the NJ Turnpike at exit 6 and take 276W into PA.

[GeoffD]

This drive is so dependent on day of week and time of day that it's pointless to suggest directions. Leaving midweek at 9am, I'd just plan on I-95 to the Tappan Zee and loop around 287 to I-78. If there's a problem, Waze will re-route me.

[scorpio516]

I've crossed basically every bridge from the GW north.

you could cross the Hudson on the Pike or US 20 in Albany
You could cross on NY-912W/Berkshire Connector.
You could cross on NY-23.
You could cross NY-199 at Kingston
You could cross US-44 in Poughkipsie
I wouldn't cross any of those, they are too far north out of the way.

You could take I-84/Newburg-Beacon Bridge. 90 to 84 in Sturbridge, then 84 until you hit 87. 87->287->78-> US-222 into Lancaster.

You could take the Bear Mountain Bridge at West Point. You get to Danbury, CT via 84, then drive through the forest, cross the Hudson, get on Palisades Parkway ->287->78->US-222 into Lancaster.

The easiest would be Tappan Zee. Either Pike ->84->either 91 or Merrit pkwy in Hartford -> 287 just over the NY border. OR 95 through MA/RI/CT then 287 just over the NY border.

BUT, one day in the middle of the night, google sent me through the Lincoln Tunnel. There was no traffic at all!

[BosYuppie]

Google maps

[JacksonPanther]

495 to 90 ton84 to 287 to Tappan Zee bridge, to nj turnpike to pa turnpike to wherever you get off for Lancaster.

[robr2]

I'd use Waze and not worry about going over the GW Bridge. If traffic is bad there, it will send you around it.

To the OP - why avoid the GW Bridge?