Interstate 287 Interstate 287 Auxiliary route of the Interstate Highway System Length : 98.65 mi ( 158.73 km ) South end : I-95 / NJTP in Edison Twp , NJ ( continues as NJ 440 ) Major junctions : I-78 in Bedminster , NJ NJ 24 in Hanover Twp , NJ I-80 in Parsippany-Troy Hills , NJ NJ 17 in Mahwah , NJ I-87 from Hillburn , NY to Elmsford , NY North end : I-95 in Rye , NY Interstate 287 ( abbreviated I-287 ) is a major interstate highway in New Jersey and New York . It is a partial beltway around New York City , serving the northern half of New Jersey as well as the counties of Rockland and Westchester in New York . I-287 follows a roughly horseshoe-shaped route . Both of its termini are located at Interstate 95 . The route through New Jersey is sometimes referred to as the Middlesex Freeway . I-287 at I-95 in Rye , NY Similar to what still exists today with the New Jersey portion of Interstate 95 , Interstate 287 was long disjointed due to community opposition . The New York stretch effectively ended at Suffern , and the New Jersey portion at U.S. Route 202 near Boonton , with a long gap between . Finally , by the late 1980s , construction commenced , with this missing section opening in November , 1993 . Major cities Bolded cities are officially-designated control cities for signs . Perth Amboy , New Jersey ( via Route 440 ) Morristown , New Jersey Mahwah , New Jersey Suffern , New York Tappan Zee Bridge , New York White Plains , New York Rye , New York Route descripton New Jersey state line along Interstate 287 south New York Working counter-clockwise , it begins in Port Chester , New York at the New England Thruway ( Interstate 95 ) . It is also called the Cross-Westchester Expressway until the New York State Thruway merge . Once merged with the westbound Thruway ( and northbound Interstate 87 ) , it crosses the Tappan Zee Bridge over the Hudson River between Tarrytown and Nyack , and continues west to Suffern . It then leaves the Thruway ( and Interstate 87 ) and crosses the New Jersey border . New Jersey It then bears southwest in New Jersey , intersecting Interstate 80 near Parsippany . It continues further south , through Morristown and eventually to Bedminster Township , where it intersects Interstate 78 . The highway then curves southeast , heading towards Perth Amboy . The I-287 signage ends at its interchange with the New Jersey Turnpike ( Interstate 95 ) ; however , the roadway continues as Route 440 towards Staten Island . Exit list New Jersey Exit Road Destination Notes Route continues as northbound NJ 440 . ( 0 ) I-95 ( New Jersey Turnpike ) Exit 10 Trenton-Philadelphia , Newark-New York 1A-B US 1 / CR 531 Trenton , Newark 2A-B NJ 27 , Lincoln Highway Metuchen , New Brunswick Northbound Exit Only , Southbound Entry Only 3 CR 501 , New Durham Road Southbound Exit Only , Northbound Entry Only 4 Durham Ave South Plainfield Northbound Exit Only , Southbound Entry Only 5 CR 529 , Stelton Road Edison 6 Washington Ave Piscataway Northbound/Southbound Exit , Northbound Entry Only 7 South Randolphville Rd Piscataway , Middlesex 8 Possumtown Rd Middlesex , Highland Park Northbound Exit Only , Northbound Entry Only 8 Centennial Ave Middlesex , Highland Park Southbound Exit Only , Southbound Entry Only 9 CR 622 , River Road Middlesex , New Brunswick 10 CR 527 , Easton Avenue New Brunswick , Somerset , South Bound Brook 12 Weston Canal Rd 13 NJ 28 , Union Avenue Somerville , Middlesex Split into 13A/B Northbound 14A US 22 East New York 14B US 22 West to US 202 / US 206 South Bridgewater Northbound Exit Only . 17 US 202 / US 206 South to US 22 West Somerville , Flemington Southbound Exit Only . 21 Interstate 78 Exit 29 Allentown , New York City 22A-B US 202 / US 206 Pluckmein , Bedminster , Netcong 26A-B CR 525 , Mt . Airy Road Basking Ridge , Liberty Corner , Bernardsville 30A North Maple Ave Basking Ridge 30B US 202 33 Harter Rd Jockey Hollow 34 James St Morristown 35 NJ 124 , South St , Madison Ave Morristown 36A-B CR 510 , Morris Avenue , Lafayette Avenue Morristown 37 NJ 24 East Springfield 39 NJ 10 The Oranges , Netcong 40 CR 511 Parsippany 41 Interstate 80 Delaware Water Gap , New York Interstate 80 Exit 43 42 US 46 / US 202 South Dover 43 Intervale Road Mountain Lakes 44 Main St Boonton 45 Woonton St Boonton 47 US 202 ( Main Rd ) Montville / Lincoln Park 52 NJ 23 Butler , Wayne 53 CR 511 ALT , Paterson-Hamburg Turnpike 55 CR 511 , CR 511 ALT , Ringwood Avenue 57 Skyline Drive , West Oakland Avenue 58 US 202 ( Ramapo Valley Rd ) Oakland 59 NJ 208 South Franklin Lakes 66 NJ 17 South Mahwah Shared alignment splits southbound , joins northbound . Route continues north ( co-signed with NJ 17 ) into New York . NJ 17 becomes NY 17 . New York County Location Mile Exit Destinations Notes Route continues south ( co-signed with NY 17 ) into New Jersey . NJ 17 . Orange Hillburn   ( 0 ) NY 17 North Shared alignment splits northbound , joins southbound . Route joins Interstate 87 ( New York Thruway ) at Exit 15 ( MP 0.65 ) . Then route exits Thruway at Exit 8 and becomes Cross-Westchester Expressway ( MP 19.78 ) . SPEED LIMIT 55 Westchester Elmsford 20 . 55 1 NY-119 ( Tarrytown Road ) — Elmsford , Tarrytown Eastbound exit is signed as Exit 8A of the Thruway . Access to Saw Mill Parkway northbound from eastbound . 21 . 23 2 NY-9A — Elmsford Westbound exit only - Entrance both directions 3 N-S Sprain Brook Pkwy Northbound Sprain only accessible from Westbound I-287 . East-to-north traffic should use the Saw Mill ( at Exit 1 ) to the Taconic . 22 . 20 4 NY-100A — Hartsdale Greenburgh 23 . 01 5 NY-100 / NY-119 ( Tarrytown Road ) Eastbound exit only Access to Bronx River Parkway 23 . 01 5 NY-100 Westbound exit only . No entrance , Use NY 119 entrance . Access to NY 119 . White Plains 24 . 10 6 NY-22 — White Plains , North White Plains Access to Bronx River Parkway   7 TO Taconic State Pkwy — North White Plains Westbound exit only 25 . 43 8W-E West : Bloomingdale Road TO NY 119 / NY 127 East : Westchester Avenue Eastbound exit only 26 . 09 8 Westchester Avenue — Westchester Mall Place , White Plains Westbound exit only Harrison 26 . 69 9A I-684 North — Brewster 27 . 87 9S-N Hutchinson River Pkwy — Whitestone Bridge , Merritt Parkway Westchester Avenue acting as C/D road . 28 . 57 10 NY 120 — Purchsase NY 120A — Port Chester Signed westbound as Bowman Avenue and Webb Avenue Rye 30 . 67 11 US 1 ( Boston Post Road ) — Rye , Port Chester Eastbound exit only 31 . 11 12 I-95 South — New York SPEED LIMIT 55 Eastbound traffic defaults onto I-95 North To New Haven Length New Jersey : 67.54 miles ( 108.7 km ) New York : 31.11 miles ( 50.06 km ) Overlap with Route 17 : 0.65 miles New York State Thruway mainline : 19.13 miles Cross Westchester Expressway : 11.33 miles Spur routes Auxiliary routes of Interstate 87 I-287 New Jersey/New York I-587 New York I-787 New York past/ future I-487 : New York - I-687 : New York Notes Interstate 287 holds an unusual distinction of being a multi-state three-digit interstate whose parent is an intrastate two-digit interstate . Congestion on I-287 in Piscataway , NJ In New Jersey , the 287 freeway is an important highway that links Mahwah to the New Jersey Turnpike in Edison Township . However , I-287 is known , even after rush hour , to have congestion problems , namely the portion that traverses through Bedminster and Bridgewater . In due time , the highway is expected to see some improvements in the Bridgewater area . The exit for US 202-206 is expected to be upgraded in the future . The entire New York section is operated by the New York State Thruway Authority , although only the section shared with I-87 is part of the mainline Thruway . The rest of the NY section is called the Cross-Westchester Expressway . No tolls exist on this portion , and signs mentioning the Thruway Authority are rare along its length . This arrangement is similar to that of Interstate 84 in New York . It is interesting to note that both ends of I-287 are at Interstate 95 , yet its parent route is Interstate 87 . I-287 interchange with I-87 in Suffern , New York . The New Jersey state line is about halfway up the photo . In New York , Thruway exits 8 and 8A and Cross-Westchester Expressway exit 1 are now combined in one interchange . Formerly , there were two separate interchanges : Thruway interchange 8 , to the Cross-Westchester , and Cross-Westchester exit 1 ( Saw Mill River Parkway to/from north only ( use Thruway interchange 7A for to/from south ) , with access only to/from west ( use interchange 3 for access to/from the east ) ) . Due to the recent rebuilding of interchange 8 , all traffic from I-287 east must remain on the Thruway beyond point where I-287 leaves it and exit at 8A , which leads to what appears to be a service road for the CWX , but ends up leading to the Saw Mill . However , to reach I-287 west from the Saw Mill south , one must merge with I-287 before merging with the Thruway ( no 8A ) . Past plans I-287 was to continue past I-95 in Port Chester and was to cross Long Island Sound via the ( unbuilt ) Oyster Bay-Rye Bridge and absorb the Seaford Oyster Bay Expressway ( NY 135 ) . Then , I-287 was again to be extended into Jones Beach by merging with the Wantagh State Parkway in Merrick . These plans were dropped as a result of community opposition and environmental concerns . Evidence of this exists at the northern end of NY 135 at exit 14 ( NY 25 ) where there is an incomplete cloverleaf interchange and the southern end at exit 1 where there is a non-conventional interchange with Merrick Road . Missing link I-287 's uncompleted section between Mahwah and Montville was the source of a great deal of controversy dating back at least to 1965 , and continuing on through its opening in 1993 . Property owners along the proposed route fought its completion as part of the freeway revolts of the 1960s and 1970s . Eventually , a route was agreed upon and permits allowing construction to begin were issued in 1988 . However , officials in Rockland County , New York , filed a lawsuit on November 19 , 1993 , hours before the highway 's official ribbon-cutting , seeking to block its opening , claiming the incompete interchange with the New York State Thruway was inadequate to handle the additional traffic . That interchange was not completed until late the following year , but the highway nevertheless opened as planned . It was widely speculated in New Jersey at the time that then- Governor James Florio sought the highway 's premature unveiling to bolster his ultimately unsuccessful re-election campaign . Ultimately , however , the opening did not occur until over two weeks following the gubernatorial election , negating any impact it may have had . Future plans Due to the congestion along I-287 and the aging and decay of the over fifty-year old Tappan Zee Bridge , talks have begun regarding the possibility of replacing the bridge . A variety of transportation improvements are currently being considered , including a commuter rail system that would link the western shore of the Hudson River with Westchester County and New York City . Several alternatives are being considered to replace the bridge . Currently , the favored alternative is a cable-stayed span . References ^ Oyster-Bay Rye Bridge , accessed July 30 , 2006 ^ I-287 Proposed Alternatives , accessed July 12 , 2006 Sources 2005 Rand McNally Road Atlas `` Missing Link of Interstate Opens , Despite Lawsuit. '' The New York Times , November 20 , 1993 . Metropolitan Desk , p. 26 . External links Interstate 287 in New Jersey Straight Line Diagram from the New Jersey Department of Transportation Highway Heaven Browse numbered routes < NJ 284 NJ I-295 < NY 286 NY NY 289 Categories : Interstate Highways in New Jersey | Interstate Highways in New York | New York State Thruway Authority | Three-digit Interstate Highways | Blue Star Memorial Highways | Bergen County , New Jersey | Middlesex County , New Jersey | Morris County , New Jersey | Passaic County , New Jersey | Somerset County , New Jersey | Rockland County , New York | Westchester County , New York 287 98.65 158.73 reg Auxiliary South I-95 / NJTP in Edison Twp , NJ ( continues as NJ 440 ) I-78 in Bedminster , NJ NJ 24 in Hanover Twp , NJ I-80 in Parsippany-Troy Hills , NJ NJ 17 in Mahwah , NJ I-87 from Hillburn , NY to Elmsford , NY North I-95 in Rye , NY 