Interchange of the Week-#48

Orientation: Interstate 278 enters at bottom, where the Bronx Kills span of the Triborough Bridge complex is just visible. It becomes the Bruckner Expressway at the interchange and continues toward top right. Interstate 87 begins at I-278 and runs toward the left on the Major Deegan Expressway.

Bruckner Boulevard enters at left, just south of I-87. It passes beneath the interchange and then runs beside and beneath the Bruckner Expressway. East 138th Street crosses under I-278 at top right, St. Ann's Avenue runs top to bottom at left, and Cypress Avenue runs directly into the interchange from the north at center.

Exit numbers: Exit 44 from I-278 is for I-87 (Major Deegan Expressway) and Exit 45 is for East 138th Street and Bruckner Boulevard. From I-87, the interchange with I-278 is not a numbered exit, being the Interstate's terminus.

The interchange: Interstate 87 is one of only two highways touching both New York City and the Canadian border (the other is NY 22). This, its southern terminus in the Bronx, is a directional-T interchange with I-278. Much of the interchange is elevated above surface streets, and a few additional ramps provide connections with the latter. The northbound I-278 Exit 45 ramp branches to the right just beyond the left-hand split to I-87. This ramp meets Bruckner Boulevard, which then intersects East 138th Street. The southbound ramp for Exit 45 is located off the upper right corner of this photo. There is also an entrance ramp, essentially a continuation of East 134th Street, to I-278 westbound (toward the Triborough Bridge) and another fed by Cypress Avenue, mostly obscured in the photo by elevated structures. Finally, there is an entrance to I-87 northbound from the intersection of Cypress Avenue and East 135th Street.

Bruckner Boulevard passes beneath the interchange through a short tunnel between St. Ann's Avenue and East 138th Street. This results in a near-coincident crossing of four separate roadway levels. Surface streets act as a local alternate for Bruckner Boulevard through the area, while the tunnel allows for a bypass of congested traffic from the various entrance and exit ramps.

Orientation: I-87 runs from bottom to top, becoming Autoroute 15 at the New York-Quebec border. (The border crosses the highway at the U-turn immediately south of the Canadian customs plaza.) US 9 enters at bottom and splits on either side of I-87, ending at the on- and offramps in each direction. To the north of these, both roadways continue to cul-de-sacs near the border. On the east side of I-87, this road is reference route 971B and on the west side, 972B.

The interchange: US 9, at its northern terminus, forms east and west service roads for I-87. An interior diamond interchange provides the connection, but instead of slip ramps merging into the service roads, the ramps are turned to meet them at right angles. US 9 formerly merged with I-87 at the border itself, but has since been truncated to this interchange.

Also visible in the photo are the U.S. and Canadian customs plazas, in an arrangement typical of freeway border crossings on land. Separate inspection areas can be seen for passenger cars and for buses and commercial vehicles. An array of other turnarounds, crossovers and pulloffs, as well as numerous offices and booths are also present.

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