Interstate 81 in New York - History

History

The Binghamton–Syracuse–Watertown corridor was originally served by NY 2, a route assigned as part of the creation of the modern New York state route system in 1924. It was replaced by US 11 when U.S. Highways were first posted in New York in 1927. In February 1953, New York Governor Thomas Dewey proposed constructing four expressways across the state of New York to supplement the then-under construction New York State Thruway. One of the four proposed highways closely followed US 11, beginning in Binghamton and proceeding generally northward through Central New York to the Canadian border north of Watertown. A connection to the Pennsylvania state line was eventually added to the route, which became known as the Penn-Can Highway. On August 14, 1957, the Penn-Can Highway was included in the Interstate Highway System and designated as part of I-81.

In the mid-1950s, the first section of the highway was completed, connecting Tully (modern exit 14) to Nedrow (16), just south of Syracuse. Another section, extending from North Syracuse (26) to Brewerton (31), was opened to traffic in the late 1950s. In the North Country, the first completed section ran from Adams (41) to Pamelia (48); it was put into service on October 21, 1959. Extensions of the North Syracuse–Brewerton segment south into downtown Syracuse (19) and north to Parish (33) were completed c. 1961. The section between modern exits 38 and 41 in southern Jefferson County was finished in November 1961, and the gap between the Syracuse–Parish and Jefferson County segments was filled on December 1, 1961, creating a continuous limited-access highway between Syracuse and Watertown.

I-81 was opened to traffic from the Pennsylvania state line north to NY 17 in Kirkwood in mid-1961, and the piece linking Pamelia to the Canadian border was completed on September 29, 1965. Three more sections of I-81 were finished to traffic in the mid-1960s, completing all of I-81 within the state except for the portion between NY 221 in Marathon and NY 26 in Whitney Point. The Marathon–Whitney Point segment was completed c. 1968. In Syracuse, part of I-81 was built on an elevated highway, intended to make travel from downtown Syracuse to Syracuse University faster.