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23-756: There are two lanes in each direction of the expressway, separated by a grassy median strip. Currently, only three exits exist on the expressway; however, the LaSalle was originally proposed as part of the Belt Expressway for the Buffalo –Niagara Falls area, stretching from the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls south to Blasdell . The Milestrip Expressway (part of NY 179 ) in Blasdell and

46-429: A 1-mile (1.6 km) highway extending from NY 5 to US 62 , was constructed in the mid-1960s and designated as NY 179 by 1968. A short continuation of the expressway east of US 62 providing direct access to New York State Thruway exit 56 was opened to traffic as an extension of NY 179 at some point in the late 1970s or early 1980s. The junction between the expressway and Milestrip Road

69-520: A mostly commercial area of the town. The LaSalle Expressway ends here, with Williams Road providing access to NY 265 and NY 384 to the south and U.S. Route 62 (US 62) and the Niagara Falls International Airport in the north. A pair of stubs exist at the point where the expressway narrows to two lanes, a remnant of the original plans to continue the highway further eastward. The right-of-way of

92-580: A partial diamond interchange before crossing over Cayuga Creek. About a quarter-mile (0.4 km) from the creek, the neighborhoods that had lined the highway abruptly end as the LaSalle Expressway passes through the remnants of the abandoned Love Canal neighborhood. At the eastern edge of the neighborhood, the expressway's four lanes narrow to two as the highway crosses into Wheatfield and follows what had intended to be exit ramps to an intersection with Williams Road (unsigned NY 952V ) in

115-753: Is a short 4.40-mile (7.08 km) long state highway located south of Buffalo in Erie County, New York , in the United States. It is known as Milestrip Road for most of its length. A small section between U.S. Route 62 (US 62) and NY 5 in Blasdell , is a freeway known as the Mile Strip Expressway . It connects to two major freeways, the New York State Thruway ( Interstate 90 or I-90) and

138-572: The New York Central Railroad and the parallel Niagara Falls branch of the Erie Railroad . At some point between 1950 and 1965, both railroads constructed an easterly bypass of the city that left the original lines about 1 mile (1.6 km) east of Williams Road. The old tracks leading directly into Niagara Falls were subsequently abandoned. Plans to build a freeway along the old railroad right-of-way date as far back as

161-621: The Southern Expressway ( US 219 ), by way of interchanges. It serves as a connector road between them and three other major routes, NY 5 , US 62 , and US 20 . Thus it is very busy not only at rush hours, but also after Buffalo Bills ' home football games due to its proximity to Highmark Stadium . The Mile Strip Expressway was first constructed in the 1960s from NY 5 in Hamburg to US 62 in Blasdell. By 1968, it received its NY 179 designation. This

184-474: The LaSalle Expressway are the only portions of the loop that were constructed. The LaSalle Expressway was built over an old railroad grade in the 1960s and opened to traffic by 1971. Near its current eastern terminus, the LaSalle Expressway passes directly south of the Love Canal neighborhood. The LaSalle Expressway begins at a trumpet interchange with I-190 in eastern Niagara Falls . It heads east from

207-698: The Rainbow Bridge to US 62 in North Tonawanda . Construction of the segment between I-190 and Williams Road began in the mid-1960s and was completed by 1971. Most of the Belt Expressway was never built. Only two parts of the road were constructed: the LaSalle Expressway and the Milestrip Expressway, part of NY 179 , in Blasdell. The 0.42-mile (0.68 km) portion of Niagara Street in downtown Niagara Falls from

230-500: The Rainbow Bridge to its junction with Fifth Street lies in the LaSalle's proposed right-of-way and is designated as part of NY 951A, the New York State Department of Transportation 's unsigned reference route designation for the LaSalle Expressway. In 2007, all of the western portion of NY 951A east of Rainbow Boulevard became co-designated with the signed NY 384 , which had been rerouted through

253-522: The built portion of the LaSalle Expressway was once occupied by the International Railway Company 's Buffalo–Niagara Falls High Speed Line, an interurban line that connected Buffalo with North Tonawanda and Niagara Falls . It was completed in 1918, but abandoned in 1937 as a result of low ridership. In the vicinity of Niagara Falls, the interurban ran adjacent to the former Buffalo and Niagara Falls Railroad line operated by

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276-428: The city. However, NY 951A's western segment still continues to Fifth Street as of 2008. In late 2011, an extension of the LaSalle Expressway past its western terminus at I-190 was mentioned by Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster as a potential long-term solution to improve safety at the junction of I-190 and US 62. The construction of the LaSalle Expressway indirectly contributed to the Love Canal disaster. When

299-530: The early 1950s, when a proposed connector between the Niagara Thruway (now I-190 ) and the Rainbow Bridge was first marked on maps of the area. The proposed highway was eventually included in plans for the Belt Expressway , a freeway encircling the Buffalo suburbs from Blasdell in the south to downtown Niagara Falls in the north. The LaSalle Expressway portion of the highway would have extended from

322-477: The freeway after an interchange with Jeffrey Boulevard. A short distance later, NY 179 intersects with US 62 (South Park Avenue), where the freeway ends and NY 179 becomes the four-lane surface road known as Milestrip Road. After re-crossing into Hamburg, NY 179 continues eastward as Milestrip Road, entering a large interchange with the New York State Thruway ( I-90 exit 56), which connects via trumpet interchange. After bending northeast,

345-553: The freeway was built along the southern edge of the neighborhood in the 1960s, it prevented the contaminated groundwater inside the former canal from escaping into the Niagara River . The trapped toxic water was then forced to the surface after the water table rose substantially following a 1977 blizzard. The entire route is in Niagara County . All exits are unnumbered. Belt Expressway The Belt Expressway

368-491: The junction as a four-lane freeway, passing through a predominantly residential area of the city. Not far from I-190, the highway connects to a spur leading south to the east end of the Niagara Scenic Parkway , which serves as a riverside connector between the LaSalle Expressway and downtown Niagara Falls. The LaSalle continues on, connecting to 77th Street by way of a diamond interchange and Cayuga Drive with

391-460: The junction between NY 179, Milestrip Road, and the Thruway was reconfigured into its current design and NY 179 was extended east to its current terminus at US 20 . CR 460 was then truncated to US 20 on its western end, transferring maintenance of Milestrip Road from the Thruway to US 20 to the New York State Department of Transportation . The Mile Strip Expressway

414-692: The northern terminus of CR 461 (California Road). After crossing under another railroad, NY 179 passes south of several strip malls in Orchard Park. The route soon becomes a four-lane divided expressway , entering a cloverleaf interchange with US 219 (the Southern Expressway). After the interchange, NY 179 proceeds eastward between several strip malls, soon intersecting with US 20 (Southwestern Boulevard), where NY 179 terminates. CR 460 continues eastward along Milestrip Road to NY 187 . The Mile Strip Expressway,

437-458: The route crosses over the Thruway, passing north and south of several strip malls until an intersection with CR 204 (McKinley Parkway). After CR 204, NY 179 passes north of McKinley Mall , proceeding eastward as a four-lane undivided expressway past several residences before bending northeast, intersecting with CR 4 (Abbott Road) in the town of Orchard Park . After CR 4, NY 179 proceeds east through Orchard Park intersecting

460-624: The town of Hamburg as the Mile Strip Expressway, running north as a four-lane freeway north of a stamping plant, operated by the Ford Motor Company . Just after the stamping plant, NY 179 enters its first interchange, Milestrip Road, which connects to NY 179 east via a jughandle. Crossing into the town of Blasdell , the freeway crosses over three separate railroad grades consecutively before crossing into downtown Blasdell. In Blasdell, another railroad crosses

483-500: Was a proposed freeway in Western New York in the United States. It would have begun south of the city of Buffalo in the village of Blasdell and headed north and west to the Rainbow Bridge in the city of Niagara Falls . Although most of the road was never built, two portions of the loop were constructed near its proposed endpoints: New York State Route 179 New York State Route 179 ( NY 179 )

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506-591: Was extended to the Thruway in the next decade and by 2001, was extended to its current eastern terminus at US 20 in Orchard Park. Although never constructed as such, the Mile Strip was intended to be a portion of the Belt Expressway , an outer loop for the city of Buffalo . NY 179 begins at an interchange with NY 5 (Lake Shore Road) near the shores Lake Erie in Woodlawn Beach State Park . NY 179 proceeds eastward through

529-459: Was initially a four-way intersection, with Milestrip Road passing east–west through the intersection and NY 179 entering from the south to connect to Thruway exit 56 to the north. The entirety of Milestrip Road east of US 62 was initially maintained by Erie County as CR 460. The intersection between NY 179 and US 62 was originally planned as an overpass, but was later constructed as an at-grade intersection. By 2001,

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