{{Short description|Highway in New York}} {{Use American English|date=February 2026}} {{good article}} {{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}} {{Infobox road |state=NY |type=SR |route=895 |alternate_name=Sheridan Boulevard |map={{maplink-road}} |map_custom=yes |map_alt=Map of New York State Route 895 |map_notes=Map of the Bronx in New York City with NY 895 highlighted in red |length_mi=1.29 |length_round=2 |length_ref=<ref name="2008tvr" /> |history={{bulleted list |Completed in 1963 as I-278<ref name="Albany-Sheridan-Jan1963"/> |Renumbered to I-895 on January 1, 1970<ref name="1970log" /> |Decommissioned as Interstate on September 24, 2017<ref name=AASHTO-2017A/> }} |direction_a=South |terminus_a={{Jct|state=NY|I|278}} in Hunts Point |direction_b=North |terminus_b={{Jct|state=NY|I|95}} / East 177th Street / East Tremont Avenue in West Farms |counties=Bronx |previous_type=NY |previous_route=890 |next_type=NY |next_route=961F }} '''New York State Route 895''' ('''NY 895'''), known locally as '''Sheridan Boulevard''', is a state highway in the New York City borough of The Bronx. Its south end is at a merge with the Bruckner Expressway (I-278) in the Hunts Point neighborhood, and its north end is at the Cross Bronx Expressway (I-95), where the road connects with local streets in the West Farms neighborhood.
The route opened to traffic in 1963 as a freeway known as the '''Arthur V. Sheridan Expressway''', and it was designated as '''Interstate 895''' ('''I-895''') in 1970. The expressway, colloquially called "'''The Sheridan'''", was co-named for the Bronx Borough Commissioner of Public Works Arthur V. Sheridan, who died in a car crash in 1952. I-895 was supposed to connect back to I-95, its parent route, further north in Eastchester. However, due to community opposition, this extension was never built. As a result, I-895 saw relatively little use, since it ran parallel to the longer Bronx River Parkway.
In the 1990s, community groups began advocating for most of I-895 to be demoted to a boulevard. These groups cited the Sheridan Expressway's negative impact on the community. In the 2000s and 2010s, the city and state investigated ways to integrate the highway with the neighboring community. I-895 was downgraded to a state route in September 2017, in preparation for its conversion into Sheridan Boulevard. The conversion of most of NY 895 into a boulevard began in September 2018, and it was completed on December 11, 2019.
This is one of two "state route 895"s that have also been designated as "Interstate 895", although Virginia's version was never signed as an Interstate due to a number of factors that prevented such from occurring.
==Route description== [[File:278overheads.jpg|thumb|left|Overhead guide signs for the Sheridan on the Bruckner Expressway, before I-895 was decommissioned in 2017]] NY 895 begins at exit 49 on I-278, also known as the Bruckner Expressway, in the Hunts Point neighborhood of the Bronx. The road heads northward as a two-lane freeway, paralleling the Bronx River and the Amtrak-owned Northeast Corridor railroad tracks. There is one intermediate interchange, which is for Westchester Avenue, about {{convert|0.6|mi|1}} north of the split from the Bruckner Expressway, where the road becomes a four-lane freeway.<ref name=bing-maps/><ref name="google maps"/>
After curving slightly to the northeast, the road becomes a four-lane boulevard and intersects Jennings Street. A frontage road begins to parallel the Sheridan on the east side until it terminates at a cul-de-sac in East Tremont, while the bidirectional West Farms Road also parallels the road on its west side. The Sheridan crosses under East 174th Street and officially ends at an interchange with the Cross Bronx Expressway (I-95) in East Tremont. The roadway continues beyond the Cross Bronx as a short connector to local West Farms streets.<ref name="bing-maps">{{bing maps |url=http://binged.it/1N8lftA |title=Overview map of NY 895/Sheridan Expressway |access-date=August 14, 2015}}</ref><ref name="google maps"/>
For its entire route, NY 895 parallels the Bronx River, which is located to the highway's east. Amtrak's Northeast Corridor also runs parallel to both the Bronx River and NY 895, crossing the Bronx River north of Westchester Avenue.<ref name=bing-maps/><ref name="google maps"/><ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013"/>{{rp|22}} The New York City Subway's Whitlock Avenue station, served by the {{NYCS trains|Pelham local}}, is located above and adjacent to the boulevard south of Westchester Avenue.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013"/>{{rp|57}} As a former Interstate Highway, NY 895 is part of the National Highway System.<ref name="Securities Commission 2018">{{cite web |date=June 28, 2018 |title=Addition to the National Network |url=https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/06/28/2018-13903/addition-to-the-national-network |access-date=November 11, 2022 |publisher=Federal Register}}</ref><ref name="NHS">{{cite web |last1=Natzke |first1=Stefan |last2=Neathery |first2=Mike |last3=Adderley |first3=Kevin |name-list-style=amp |date=June 26, 2013 |title=What is the National Highway System? |url=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/national_highway_system/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120828192748/http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/national_highway_system/ |archive-date=August 28, 2012 |access-date=July 1, 2013 |work=National Highway System |publisher=Federal Highway Administration}}</ref>
==History== ===Planning and construction=== In 1941, the New York City Planning Department and city planner Robert Moses proposed a short expressway route to connect the Bronx Crosstown Highway (now the Cross Bronx Expressway) and the Southern Boulevard Express Highway (now the Bruckner Expressway).<ref name="NYCPks-Starlight"/><ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013">{{cite web |title = The Sheridan Expressway Study: Reconnecting the Neighborhoods Around the Sheridan Expressway and Improving Access to Hunts Point |url = http://www1.nyc.gov/assets/planning/download/pdf/plans-studies/sheridan-hunts-point/final_full_report.pdf |access-date = February 19, 2017 |publisher = City of New York |date = December 2013 }}</ref>{{rp|10}} The new highway would be an alternative to the Bronx River Parkway that could be used by commercial vehicles, since these vehicles were banned from parkways in New York. The route was originally named the '''Bronx River Expressway'''.<ref name="NYTimes-Lyons-Sheridan-1952">{{cite news |title = Lyons for Expressway Change |url = https://www.nytimes.com/1952/08/21/archives/lyons-for-expressway-change.html |access-date = February 19, 2017 |work = The New York Times |date = August 21, 1952 }}</ref><ref name="NYTimes-MosesHwys-1945">{{cite news |author-link = Robert Moses |last = Moses |first = Robert |title = New Highways for a Better New York; We have started a program, says Mr. Moses, which will give us a less congested and more comfortable and accessible city. |url = https://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=9D0DE0DF163FEE3ABC4952DFB767838E659EDE&legacy=true |access-date = February 19, 2017 |work=The New York Times |date = November 11, 1945 }}</ref> This was part of a larger network of highways in New York City, which was to cost $800 million (equivalent to ${{Formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|800000000|1940}}}} in {{Inflation/year|index=US-GDP}}{{Inflation/fn|index=US-GDP}}). In February 1945, the city agreed to pay $60 million (equivalent to ${{Formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|60000000|1945}}}} in {{Inflation/year|index=US-GDP}}{{Inflation/fn|index=US-GDP}}) of that cost.<ref name="nyt-1945-02-20">{{Cite news |date=February 20, 1945 |title=Road Plan Allots 60 Million to City |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1945/02/20/84629382.pdf |access-date=December 19, 2017 }}</ref> That November, the city, state, and federal governments agreed to fund several new highways in New York City. Among these was the Bronx River Expressway, which was to cost $7.18 million.<ref name="nyt-1945-11-26">{{Cite news |date=November 26, 1945 |title=$285,000,000 Roads Planned for City; the Folks Back in the Old Country Are Proud of New York City's Mayor-elect |language=en-US |work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1945/11/26/archives/285000000-roads-planned-for-city-the-folks-back-in-the-old-country.html |access-date=October 31, 2022 }}</ref>
In August 1952, following the death of Arthur V. Sheridan, Bronx borough president James J. Lyons proposed renaming the planned highway after Sheridan;<ref name="NYTimes-Lyons-Sheridan-1952" /><ref name="NYCPks-Sheridan">{{cite web |url = http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/historical_signs/hs_historical_sign.php?id=11693 |title = Sheridan Expressway – Historical Sign |publisher = New York City Department of Parks and Recreation |access-date = April 4, 2010 }}</ref> according to Lyons, the expressway had been one of Sheridan's "pet projects".<ref name="p1322260179">{{cite news |date=August 21, 1952 |title=Wants Parkway Renamed |page=13 |work=New York Herald Tribune |id={{ProQuest|1322260179}}}}</ref> The law enacting the name change was signed by mayor Vincent R. Impellitteri on February 18, 1953.<ref>{{cite news |title = Call It Sheridan Expressway |url = http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2024/New%20York%20NY%20Post/New%20York%20NY%20Post%201953/New%20York%20NY%20Post%201953%20-%202419.pdf#xml=http://fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=fffffffff4c63872&DocId=2837139&Index=Z%3a%5cDISK%20X&HitCount=3&hits=257+258+259+&SearchForm=%2fFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf |access-date = February 20, 2017 |work = New York Post |via = Fultonhistory.com |date = February 18, 1953 }}</ref> Two years later, officials announced plans for the first portion of the Bruckner Expressway, consisting of a {{convert|2|mi|adj=on}} elevated expressway above Bruckner Boulevard from the Triborough Bridge to Longfellow Avenue. North of Longfellow Avenue, the highway would continue at ground level as the Sheridan Expressway, running northward for another {{convert|1.5|mi}} to the Cross Bronx Expressway.<ref name="p113217787">{{cite news |last=Ingraham. |first=Joseph C. |date=February 11, 1955 |title=East Bronx to Get an Elevated Road: Board of Estimate Approves Bringing of Bruckner Blvd. To Expressway Standard |page=25 |work=The New York Times |id={{ProQuest|113217787}}}}</ref>
{{anchor|Interstate 895}}{{infobox road small |header_type=former |state=NY |type=I |route=895 |length_mi=1.29 |length_round=2 |length_ref=<ref name="2008tvr" /> |location=The Bronx |established=1970<ref name="1970log" /> |decommissioned=2017<ref name=AASHTO-2017A/> }}
Construction began in 1958.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013" />{{rp|10}} The highway was built parallel to the Bronx River on the former site of Starlight Park, an amusement park that was condemned to provide the right-of-way for both the Sheridan and Cross Bronx Expressways. As part of the project, a city park, also called Starlight Park, was created in its place.<ref name="NYCPks-Starlight">{{cite web |title = Starlight Park: History |url = https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/starlight-park/history |publisher = New York City Department of Parks and Recreation |access-date = February 19, 2017 }}</ref><ref name="BxRiverGreenway-Ch2">{{cite web |work = Bronx River Greenway Strategic Plan |title = Chapter 2: Greenway Route from South to North |url = http://bronxriver.org/puma/images/usersubmitted/file/GreenwayPlanChapter2v3_WEB.pdf |publisher = Bronx River Alliance |access-date = February 19, 2017 |archive-date = February 20, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170220094402/http://bronxriver.org/puma/images/usersubmitted/file/GreenwayPlanChapter2v3_WEB.pdf |url-status = dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title = Photo Report on Progress of Cross Bronx Expressway |url = http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2024/New%20York%20NY%20Post/New%20York%20NY%20Post%201950/New%20York%20NY%20Post%201950%20-%206143.pdf#xml=http://fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=5bd61939&DocId=2783975&Index=Z%3a%5cDISK%20X&HitCount=7&hits=10+1d+78+b1+cf+d3+d4+&SearchForm=%2fFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf |access-date = February 27, 2017 |work = New York Post |via = Fultonhistory.com |date = April 30, 1950 }}</ref> An additional park, Daniel Boone Playground, was also created on land condemned for the expressway.<ref>{{cite web |title = Daniel Boone Playground: History |url = https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/daniel-boone-playground/history |publisher = New York City Department of Parks and Recreation |access-date = February 20, 2017 }}</ref> Thousands of residents were displaced by the expressway's construction.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013" />{{rp|10}} A {{convert|1|acre|ha|adj=on}} plot at the southeast corner of the Bronx Zoo was also acquired for the highway's proposed expansion past the Cross Bronx Expressway,<ref>{{cite news| title= Park Land Sliced by City Road Jobs; Five Areas Affected, but an Over-all Gain in Play Sites is Expected From Work| work=The New York Times | date=July 28, 1960 | url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1960/07/28/119109198.pdf| access-date=February 4, 2018}}</ref> even though the Sheridan Expressway was ultimately not built that far.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013" />{{rp|10}}
=== Opening and canceled extension === thumb|left|A 1964 highway map showing the completed portion of the expressway (green), and the unbuilt extension (red).
The $9.5 million expressway was opened to traffic on February 6, 1963.<ref name="Albany-Sheridan-Jan1963">{{cite news |title = Expressway Link To Open Feb. 6 |url = http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2018/Albany%20NY%20Times%20Union/Albany%20NY%20Times%20Union%201963/Albany%20NY%20Times%20Union%201963%20-%200176.pdf#xml=http://fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=ffffffffae57cbe0&DocId=5847929&Index=Z%3a%5cIndex%20I%2dE%2dV&HitCount=2&hits=337+338+&SearchForm=%2fFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf |access-date = February 20, 2017 |work = Times Union |location = Albany, NY |via = Fultonhistory.com |date = January 6, 1963 |page = A3 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title = Expressway to Open |url = http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2010/Yonkers%20NY%20Herald%20Statesman/Yonkers%20NY%20Herald%20Statesman%201963%20%20Grayscale/Yonkers%20NY%20Herald%20Statesman%201963%20%20Grayscale%20-%201047.pdf#xml=http://fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=2ac88f8d&DocId=1308245&Index=Z%3a%5cIndex%20I%2dE%2dV&HitCount=2&hits=e78+e79+&SearchForm=%2fFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf |access-date = February 20, 2017 |work = Yonkers Herald Statesman |via = Fultonhistory.com |date = February 4, 1963 }}</ref> Over the years, the expressway has received a number of Interstate designations. It was originally designated as I-695 in late 1958. In early 1959, the highway designation was changed to I-895, but I-278 was rerouted to use the Sheridan Expressway later that year. The highway was thus known as I-278 when it opened in 1963. On January 1, 1970, I-278 was realigned to follow the Bruckner Expressway east to the Bruckner Interchange while the Sheridan Expressway was redesignated as I-895.<ref name="1970log">{{cite book |url = http://www.greaternyroads.info/pdfs/state70.pdf |title = Official Description of Touring Routes in New York State |author = State of New York Department of Transportation |author-link = State of New York Department of Transportation |date = January 1, 1970 |access-date = July 13, 2010 }}</ref>
The Sheridan Expressway was originally planned to extend northeast to the New England Thruway (I-95) in Eastchester just north of Co-op City, creating a shortcut toward New England and a direct route to New England from the Triborough Bridge.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013" />{{rp|10}}<ref name="30YrsOfProgress">{{cite book |title = 30 Years of Progress: 1934-1965 |date = June 9, 1964 |publisher = New York City Department of Parks and Recreation |url = https://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_about/parks_history/library/pdf/thirty_years_of_progress.pdf |access-date = March 31, 2017 }}</ref><ref name="Bullard Johnson Torres 2004">{{cite book | last1=Bullard | first1=R.D. | last2=Johnson | first2=G.S. | last3=Torres | first3=A.O. | title=Highway Robbery: Transportation Racism & New Routes to Equity | publisher=South End Press | year=2004 | isbn=978-0-89608-704-0 | url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780896087040 | url-access=registration | page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780896087040/page/96 96] | access-date=November 11, 2017 }}</ref>{{rp|79}} The extension would have been built along Boston Road (U.S. Route 1) through Bronx Park and Northeast Bronx.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013" />{{rp|10}}<ref name="DailyArgus-NWBx-Moses-1945">{{cite news |title = Moses' Postwar Highway Plan To Affect North Bronx Sector |url = http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2018/Mount%20Vernon%20NY%20Daily%20Argus/Mount%20Vernon%20NY%20Daily%20Argus%201945/Mount%20Vernon%20NY%20Daily%20Argus%201945%20-%201015.pdf#xml=http://fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=74fb477a&DocId=3121809&Index=Z%3a%5cIndex%20I%2dE%2dV&HitCount=3&hits=641+642+643+&SearchForm=%2fFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf |access-date = February 20, 2017 |work = The Daily Argus |via = Fultonhistory.com |date = April 5, 1945 |location = North Bronx }}</ref> Shortly after the opening of the first segment of the expressway, it was projected that construction of the first extension to the Bronx River Parkway would begin 1965, and the final segment to the New England Thruway in 1967.<ref name="30YrsOfProgress"/> However, the project, like other Robert Moses highways, faced increasing community opposition.<ref name=BI-Sheridan-2017/><ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013" />{{rp|10}}<ref name="Bullard Johnson Torres 2004"/>{{rp|80}} It was cancelled by Governor Nelson Rockefeller in 1971, one year before its originally projected completion, though construction on the extension never started.<ref name="NYCPks-Starlight"/>
Because of the cancellation of the extension, the Sheridan was locally seen as a stub highway with very little utility, serving the same movements as the Major Deegan Expressway (I-87) and Bronx River Parkway.<ref name=BI-Sheridan-2017/><ref name="origin">{{cite press release |publisher = Southern Bronx River Watershed Alliance |date = July 21, 2009 |title = Southern Bronx River Watershed Alliance Stand On Sheridan During Rush Hour |url = http://www.southbronxvision.org/documents/SBRWAPressRelease.pdf |access-date = July 13, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131207133211/http://southbronxvision.org/documents/SBRWAPressRelease.pdf |archive-date = December 7, 2013 |url-status = usurped }}</ref><ref name="Plan">{{cite news |title = Plan to Remove Bronx Expressway Gains Traction |first = Sam |last = Dolnick |url = https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/13/nyregion/13sheridan.html |newspaper = The New York Times |date = July 12, 2010 |access-date = July 13, 2010 }}</ref> In 2011, the New York City Department of Transportation and the New York City Economic Development Corporation conducted a study of trucks entering and leaving the Hunts Point Cooperative Market, a large food market located near the Sheridan Expressway's south end. The study found that only 19% of drivers headed to or from Hunts Point Market used the Sheridan, while an average of 51% of drivers used the Bruckner Expressway and another 30% used local streets.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013"/>{{rp|23}}
===Refurbishment and decommissioning plan=== [[File:Penny-farthing on I-895 jeh.jpg|thumb|Bicycling on the Sheridan during Transportation Alternatives' 2007 "Tour de Bronx"]]
The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) started studying ways to reduce congestion and improve safety at the Sheridan Expressway's southern interchange with the Bruckner Expressway.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013"/>{{rp|13}} The NYSDOT proposed expanding the highway in the late 1990s.<ref name="BI-Sheridan-2017">{{cite web | last=Muoio | first=Danielle | title=A hated, mile-long highway shows an overlooked problem with America's infrastructure - but it could soon come crumbling down | website=Business Insider | date=July 9, 2017 | url=http://www.businessinsider.com/cities-removing-highways-cut-off-neighborhoods-2017-7 | access-date=November 11, 2017}}</ref><ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013"/>{{rp|13}} The plan faced opposition rooted in claims of environmental justice from community groups, most notably the Southern Bronx River Watershed Alliance, which proposed an alternative that called for the expressway to be replaced with affordable housing, schools, and a park.<ref name="Bullard Johnson Torres 2004"/>{{rp|87}}<ref name="Lakhman 1999">{{cite web | last=Lakhman | first=Marina | title=Neighborhood Report: East Tremont; The Greening of a Highway | website=The New York Times | date=January 3, 1999 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/01/03/nyregion/neighborhood-report-east-tremont-the-greening-of-a-highway.html | access-date=November 11, 2017}}</ref> At the time, the nearby, parallel Bronx River Parkway saw twice as many daily vehicles as did the Sheridan Expressway:<ref name="Lakhman 1999"/> in 2001, I-895 carried 37,000 daily vehicles, while the Bronx River Parkway carried 60,000 to 100,000 daily vehicles.<ref name="OGrady 2001" /> Residents also opposed a proposal to connect the expressway with Hunts Point Market to the south, saying that the NYSDOT had not consulted them about plans for the connection.<ref>{{cite web | last=Copage | first=Eric V | title=Neighborhood Report: Hunts Point; Face-Off Over Highway Link | website=The New York Times | date=August 22, 1999 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/08/22/nyregion/neighborhood-report-hunts-point-face-off-over-highway-link.html | access-date=November 11, 2017}}</ref> Some community groups created an alliance called the Southern Bronx River Watershed Alliance (SBRWA), which began devising plans for removing the highway.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013"/>{{rp|13}}
In 2001, the NYSDOT again started looking at ways to improve I-895, especially at the Bruckner Expressway junction, a source of congestion due to a merge in the southbound/westbound directions. Local groups advocated for the Sheridan Expressway's removal because it isolated Hunts Point from the rest of the Bronx, and proposed that new ramps from the Bruckner Expressway be built for trucks going to Hunts Point Market. However, the NYSDOT stated that removing the highway would force expressway traffic to use local streets instead.<ref name="OGrady 2001">{{cite web | last=O'Grady | first=Jim | title=Neighborhood Report: Bronx Up Close; Sheridan's Fork in the Road: Either Fix It or Kill It | website=The New York Times | date=November 11, 2001 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/11/nyregion/neighborhood-report-bronx-up-close-sheridan-s-fork-road-either-fix-it-kill-it.html | access-date=November 11, 2017}}</ref> An environmental impact statement was started in 2003. In a final scoping document for the proposal in 2003, the NYSDOT conducted studies of the neighborhood and found that the best option was to make the interchange with Bruckner Expressway a full interchange, with the Sheridan Expressway able to access both directions of the expressway and vice versa. The Sheridan Expressway itself would be decommissioned, and several alternatives all proposed easier access to Hunts Point Market.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dot.ny.gov/regional-offices/region11/projects/project-repository/bese/scoping/scopingdocument.html|title=Final Public Scoping Document for the New York State Department of Transportation's Bruckner-Sheridan Interchange Reconstruction EIS|publisher=New York State Department of Transportation|date=September 4, 2003|access-date=November 11, 2017}}</ref>
In 2008, the NYSDOT announced that it was holding talks with community officials for an alternative community plan.<ref>{{Cite press release|url=https://www.dot.ny.gov/regional-offices/region11/projects/project-repository/bese/outreach7-17-08.html|title=Conclusion of Public Scoping and Alternative Design Refinement Process|publisher=New York State Department of Transportation|date=August 7, 2008|access-date=November 11, 2017}}</ref> The state studied the feasibility of removing I-895, releasing its results in July 2010.<ref name=Plan /> The state's study showed that local traffic would be worsened if the highway was removed.<ref name="Study" /> At this point, I-895 carried 50,000 daily vehicles.<ref name="Study">{{cite news |title = Local Traffic Would Worsen Without Sheridan, Study Shows |first = Sam |last = Dolnick |url = https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/14/nyregion/14sheridan.html |newspaper = The New York Times |date = July 13, 2010 |access-date = August 9, 2010 }}</ref><ref name="p1290702782">{{cite magazine |last=Potkewitz |first=Hilary |date=February 11, 2013 |title=Living with the 'road to nowhere' |magazine=Crain's New York Business |volume=29 |issue=6 |page=3 |id={{ProQuest|1290702782}}}}</ref> Later the same year, local community groups received a $1.5 million federal grant to study the potential removal of the highway.<ref name="The Architect’s Newspaper 2011">{{cite web |date=June 23, 2011 |title=Go Down, Moses |url=https://www.archpaper.com/2011/06/go-down-moses/ |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=The Architect’s Newspaper}}</ref><ref name="p875640071">{{cite magazine |last=Woodman |first=Spencer |date=May-June 2011 |title=NYC Considers Razing Bronx Highway |volume=77 |issue=5 |page=4 |id={{proQuest|875640071}} |magazine=Planning}}</ref> The administration of New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg was also opposed to the removal.<ref>{{cite news |last = Deekman |first = Daniel |title = Transportation officials nix Sheridan Expressway removal |url = http://articles.nydailynews.com/2012-06-11/news/32179031_1_sheridan-study-removal-bronx-activists#ixzz1xUEFwIAe |archive-url = https://archive.today/20130130034421/http://articles.nydailynews.com/2012-06-11/news/32179031_1_sheridan-study-removal-bronx-activists%23ixzz1xUEFwIAe |url-status = dead |archive-date = January 30, 2013 |access-date = June 20, 2012 |newspaper = Daily News |date = June 11, 2012 |location = New York }}</ref> The dispute between the local community and the city and state governments led to a stalemate, what the ''Daily News'' called a "crossroads" and "a road to nowhere".<ref name="Crossroads">{{cite news |last=Beekman |first=Daniel |date=July 20, 2010 |title=Sheridan at crossroads: Local advocates want expressway closed, but DOT warns of traffic snafus |newspaper=Daily News |location=New York |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/bronx/2010/07/20/2010-07-20_untitled__b20road.html |access-date=August 9, 2010}}</ref> The plan was dropped after the Hunts Point Terminal Produce Cooperative threatened to move to New Jersey if I-895 were demolished.<ref name="p1290702782" />
In 2013, the city conducted a study of the Sheridan Expressway. The study recommended downgrading the northern part of the expressway to an at-grade boulevard, connecting the three parks along the waterfront, and creating or improving vehicular ramps between the new boulevard, I-278, and the Hunts Point neighborhood.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013" />{{rp|48}}<ref name="Slattery 2013">{{cite web |last=Slattery |first=Denis |date=May 23, 2013 |title=City plan to morph Sheridan Expressway into boulevard meets mixed reviews by residents |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/bronx/mixed-reviews-city-plan-move-trucks-sheridan-article-1.1352095 |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=New York Daily News}}</ref> The decommissioning proposal consisted of two options: retaining the separate West Farms Road parallel to the expressway or combining the two arteries. Both proposals involved demolishing the frontage road east of the expressway.<ref name="SheridanStudy-Dec2013" />{{rp|29}} City officials presented the plans to the SBRWA in May 2013.<ref name="Slattery 2013" /> The next month, the city government officially endorsed the plan, which was expected to cost $117 million.<ref name="Slattery 20132">{{cite web |last=Slattery |first=Denis |date=June 25, 2013 |title=City backs Sheridan Expressway slowdown |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/bronx/locals-hail-city-sheridan-expressway-slowdown-article-1.1382382 |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=New York Daily News}}</ref><ref name="Cruz 2013">{{cite web |last=Cruz |first=David |date=June 27, 2013 |title=City backs split plan for Sheridan Expressway – Bronx Times |url=https://www.bxtimes.com/city-backs-split-plan-for-sheridan-expressway/ |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=Bronx Times}}</ref>
=== Conversion to boulevard === thumb|left|NY 895 (Sheridan Blvd) In March 2017, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that the expressway would be replaced with a boulevard.<ref name="wsj-2017-03-19">{{Cite web |last=Kanno-Youngs |first=Zolan |date=March 19, 2017 |title=Road Project Would Reconnect Neighborhoods to the Bronx River |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/road-project-would-reconnenct-neighborhoods-to-the-bronx-river-1489959802 |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=Wall Street Journal}}</ref><ref name="McGeehan 2017" /> The 2017 New York State budget included $97 million for decommissioning the Interstate designation and the Sheridan Expressway, as recommended by the New York City Council and New York City Department of Transportation. Another $600 million was later added to the state budget for decommissioning the highway,<ref name="McGeehan 2017">{{cite web | last=McGeehan | first=Patrick | title=Cuomo Plots Demise of Bronx's Unloved Sheridan Expressway | website=The New York Times | date=March 19, 2017 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/19/nyregion/cuomo-bronx-sheridan-expressway.html | access-date=November 11, 2017}}</ref> bringing the total budget to nearly $700 million.<ref name="NYDN-Cuomo-Announcement-2017" /> The decommissioning would comprise the first phase of a project that would cost a total of $1.8 billion.<ref name="McGeehan 2017" /> On September 24, 2017, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials decommissioned I-895, and the road was redesignated as New York State Route 895 (NY 895). The signs for I-895 were not immediately replaced with NY 895 shields.<ref name="AASHTO-2017A">{{AASHTO minutes |year = 2017A |access-date=October 21, 2017 |page = 4 |link = yes }}</ref> Despite no longer being an Interstate Highway, NY 895 remained part of the National Network.<ref name="Securities Commission 2018" />
thumb|right|NY 895 northbound at Westchester Avenue The plans called for the expressway to be demolished and converted into a lower-speed boulevard called "Sheridan Boulevard" by 2019. The new boulevard would include traffic lights at Jennings, 172nd, and 173rd Streets, with crosswalks that connect the residential area on the current expressway's west side with Starlight Park on its east. The boulevard would run parallel to West Farms Road, in a manner similar to the first of the city's two proposals for downgrading the highway.<ref>{{cite AV media|url=https://www.governor.ny.gov/sites/governor.ny.gov/files/thumbnails/image/SheridanBlvd_Overall%20Plan.jpg|title=Sheridan Blvd Overall Plan|publisher=New York State Department of Transportation|website=governor.ny.gov|date=2017|access-date=November 10, 2017}}</ref> {{as of|2017}}, the park was only accessible via the East 174th Street bridge that crosses both the expressway and the Bronx River. The project was expected to improve pedestrian safety and access to both Starlight Park and the Bronx River shoreline.<ref name="McGeehan 2017" /><ref name="NYDN-Cuomo-Announcement-2017">{{cite news|last1=Durkin|first1=Erin|title=Cuomo announces Sheridan Expressway to be demolished in favor of pedestrian boulevard in the Bronx|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/bronx/cuomo-announces-sheridan-expressway-demolished-article-1.3002828|access-date=November 11, 2017|work=New York Daily News|date=March 19, 2017}}</ref> The Federal Highway Administration (FHA)'s acting head wrote a letter to NYSDOT officials in June 2018, stating that the NYSDOT "provide[d] adequate justification" to downgrade the former I-895 into a boulevard.<ref name="NYDN-Federal-Approval-2018" /> The federal government approved the conversion of NY 895 into a boulevard on September 19, 2018. The NYSDOT immediately announced that work would begin on decommissioning the highway within a week, and that the project would be complete by late 2019.<ref name="NYDN-Federal-Approval-2018">{{cite web | last=Rivoli | first=Dan | title=Feds pave way to transform the Bronx's Sheridan Expressway | website=New York Daily News | date=September 19, 2018 | url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-metro-sheridan-expressway-boulevard-20180919-story.html | access-date=September 20, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Walker | first=Ameena | title=Bronx's Sheridan Expressway overhaul gets federal approval | website=Curbed NY | date=September 20, 2018 | url=https://ny.curbed.com/2018/9/20/17882312/bronx-sheridan-expressway-overhaul-approved | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180920220013/https://ny.curbed.com/2018/9/20/17882312/bronx-sheridan-expressway-overhaul-approved | url-status=dead | archive-date=September 20, 2018 | access-date=October 16, 2019}}</ref> The conversion was completed on December 11, 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.amny.com/news/state-finishes-sheridan-boulevard-conversion-to-boost-bronx-waterfront-access/|title=State finishes Sheridan Boulevard conversion to boost Bronx River waterfront access|last=Barone|first=Vincent|date=December 11, 2019|website=www.amny.com|access-date=December 12, 2019}}</ref><ref name="Fink 2019">{{cite web|last=Fink|first=Zack|date=December 11, 2019|title=New Sheridan Expressway Expected to Reconnect South Bronx With Waterways|url=https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/politics/2019/12/12/new-sheridan-expressway-expected-to-reconnect-south-bronx-with-waterways-bruckner-expressway-rebuild|access-date=August 5, 2021|website=Spectrum News NY1}}</ref><ref name="Times 2019">{{cite web|date=December 20, 2019|title=Sheridan Expressway's removal project is completed|url=https://www.bxtimes.com/sheridan-expressways-removal-project-is-completed/|access-date=August 5, 2021|website=Bronx Times}}</ref>
Another part of the project entailed constructing exit ramps to Edgewater Road from southbound NY 895, as well as from both directions of I-278, providing direct access to Hunts Point Market. In addition, an entrance ramp to northbound NY 895 would be built from Edgewater Road. Most of the project's cost would come from building these ramps.<ref name="McGeehan 2017" /> At the time of the proposal, up to 13,000 trucks per day<ref name="NYDN-Cuomo-Announcement-2017" /> simply detoured through local streets to get to the market, which elicited complaints from residents.<ref name="McGeehan 2017" /> The state also announced in mid-2019 that it would start construction on the exit ramp to Edgewater Road from southbound NY 895.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amny.com/news/hunts-point-highway-project-1-31949630/|title=State preps $1.7B contract to move forward with Hunts Point highway project|last=Trangle|first=Sarina |date=June 3, 2019|website=amNewYork|access-date=December 12, 2019}}</ref> Construction on the first phase of the Edgewater Road access project began that year; the work included replacing existing overpasses and building the new ramps.<ref name="Fink 2019" /><ref name="Times 2019" /> The first phase was completed on October 31, 2022,<ref name="WNYC 2022">{{cite web |last=Nessen |first=Stephen |date=October 31, 2022 |title=New roads expected to reduce truck traffic in South Bronx |url=https://www.wnyc.org/story/new-roads-expected-reduce-traffic-streets-south-bronx/ |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=WNYC}}</ref> consisting of the three ramps to and from NY 895.<ref name="Sequeira 2022">{{cite web | last=Sequeira | first=Robbie | title=After construction, how different will Hunts Points infrastructure, and the community, be by decade's end? | website=Bronx Times | date=October 31, 2022 | url=https://www.bxtimes.com/after-construction-hunts-points-infrastructure/ | access-date=November 11, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Governor Kathy Hochul 2014">{{cite web |date=October 31, 2022 |title=Governor Hochul Announces Completion of Phase One of $1.7 Billion Hunts Point Access Improvement Project on Time and Under Budget |url=https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-announces-completion-phase-one-17-billion-hunts-point-access-improvement |access-date=November 11, 2022 |website=ny.gov}}</ref> Two other phases included rebuilding portions of the Bruckner Expressway in the vicinity of the NY 895 interchange, to be completed by 2025.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Morris|first=Sebastian|date=April 1, 2021|title=State Officials Commence Second Phase of Hunts Point Access Improvement Project in the South Bronx|url=https://newyorkyimby.com/2021/04/state-officials-commence-second-phase-of-hunts-point-access-improvement-project-in-the-south-bronx.html|access-date=August 5, 2021|website=New York YIMBY|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Valentina|first=Adriana|date=March 29, 2021|title=Work begins on second phase of Hunts Point access improvement project|url=https://www.newyorkconstructionreport.com/work-begins-on-second-phase-of-hunts-point-access-improvement-project/|access-date=August 5, 2021|website=New York Construction Report}}</ref> The first two ramps that were built as part of the second phase opened in late 2022,<ref name="Sequeira 2022"/><ref name="Governor Kathy Hochul 2014"/> and a new ramp from Sheridan Boulevard to the westbound Cross Bronx Expressway was also built.<ref name="Schneider 2023"/> Workers began reconstructing the ramps to and from the Bruckner Expressway in early 2023.<ref>{{cite web | last= Rapoport |first=Irwin | title=NYSDOT Project Enters Third, Final Phase | website=Construction Equipment Guide | date=April 20, 2023 | url=https://www.constructionequipmentguide.com/nysdot-project-enters-third-final-phase/60880 | access-date=November 10, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Final Phase of $1.7B Hunts Point Access Improvement Project Kicks Off in the South Bronx | website=New York YIMBY | last=Morris | first=Sebastian | date=January 4, 2023 | url=https://newyorkyimby.com/2023/01/final-phase-of-1-7b-hunts-point-access-improvement-project-kicks-off-in-the-south-bronx.html | access-date=November 10, 2024}}</ref> That September, the intersections with 172nd and 173rd Streets were reconfigured; this allowed traffic from Sheridan Boulevard to access 172nd Street, and it also allowed traffic from 173rd Street to access Sheridan Boulevard.<ref name="Schneider 2023">{{cite web | last=Schneider | first=Aliya | title=Road redesign along Sheridan aims to improve safety and access – Bronx Times | website=Bronx Times | date=September 7, 2023 | url=https://www.bxtimes.com/road-redesign-sheridan-access/ | access-date=November 10, 2024}}</ref>
==Major intersections== {{NYinttop|borough=Bronx|length_ref=<ref name="2008tvr">{{cite web |url = https://www.dot.ny.gov/divisions/engineering/technical-services/hds-respository/Traffic%20Volume%20Report%202008.pdf |title = 2008 Traffic Volume Report for New York State |date = June 16, 2009 |page = 247 |publisher = New York State Department of Transportation |access-date = February 1, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120927024222/https://www.dot.ny.gov/divisions/engineering/technical-services/hds-respository/Traffic%20Volume%20Report%202008.pdf |archive-date = September 27, 2012 }}</ref><ref name="google maps">{{google maps |url=https://www.google.com/maps/dir/40.8201194,-73.8902211/40.8388567,-73.8781258/@40.8294033,-73.8870684,14.23z/data=!4m2!4m1!3e0 |title=Sheridan Expressway |access-date=January 9, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dot.ny.gov/divisions/engineering/technical-services/hds-respository/HighwayInventory-BronxCounty-2016.zip |title=Bronx County Inventory Listing |date=August 7, 2015 |publisher=New York State Department of Transportation |format=CSV |access-date=September 5, 2017 }}</ref>}} {{NYCint |borough=Bronx |location=Hunts Point |lspan=4 |mile=0.00 |road={{jct|state=NY|I|278|I|87|to2=to|dir1=west|dir2=north|location1=Robert F. Kennedy Bridge}} |notes=Southern terminus; exit 49 on I-278 }} {{NYCint |mile=0.20 |type=incomplete |road=Edgewater Road – Hunts Point Market |notes=No southbound entrance }} {{NYCint |mile=0.61 |type=incomplete |road=Westchester Avenue – Hunts Point Market |notes=No southbound entrance }} {{NYint |place=Northern end of freeway section }} {{NYCint |borough=Bronx |location=West Farms |lspan=2 |mile=1.29 |type=incomplete |road={{jct|state=NY|I|95|dir1=south|name1=Cross Bronx Expressway|location1=George Washington Bridge}} |notes=No northbound entrance; exit 4A on I-95 }} {{NYCint |mile=1.5 |road=East 177th Street / East Tremont Avenue |notes=Northern terminus }} {{jctbtm|keys=incomplete,unbuilt}}
==See also== * {{Portal-inline|New York City}} * {{Portal-inline|U.S. roads}}
==References== {{Reflist|2}}
==External links== {{Attached KML|display=title,inline}} {{Commons category}} {{NYSR external links|type=I|nyroutes=yes|route=895}} * [http://www.nycroads.com/roads/sheridan Sheridan Expressway] at NYCRoads.com
{{3di|95}} {{Bronx streets}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:New York State Route 895}} Category:1963 establishments in New York City 8 New York *895 895 Sheridan Category:Unfinished buildings and structures in the United States