Best way to drive Westbound across Brooklyn

October 5, 2011 9:17 PM

What's the best way through Brooklyn (by car), West to East?

I'm coming from Park Slope. I could go due east via Atlantic Ave.

Or

Take the BQE north to the LIE east

Or

Take the BQE south to the Belt east.


I'm looking to account for time, traffic, road conditions, and mileage, in that order of importance.

I'll be traveling at rush hour.

(By the way, I Google-mapped it, and I don't trust Google's estimates.)
Any ideas?

posted by antipode12 to travel & transportation around New York, NY (13 answers total)

Time, traffic and mileage depends on if your destination is more easily reached from the LIE or the Belt/South Shore Parkway. (If your destination is closer to LIE and we tell you to take the Belt, you may wind up wasting time that way, etc.)
posted by bleep at 9:27 PM on October 5, 2011

I've done Park Slope to Long Beach and to JFK a few times via Atlantic and via the Belt. It might be a wash, depending on where you're going, but I find Atlantic a little more bearable.

Caveat, I don't regularly drive in NYC.
posted by dixiecupdrinking at 9:28 PM on October 5, 2011

My destination is on the South Shore of Nassau county.
posted by antipode12 at 9:30 PM on October 5, 2011

Where(ish) is your destination? Up until I quit that job last year, I had to work in Park Slope and then drive back to Long Island to the office often (Elmont/Valley Stream area, so southish near the Cross Island). I would travel east from Park Slope on Eastern Parkway to Pitkin Ave to Conduit to the Belt a little before rush hour and it was ok. But if you want to get to the LIE, that's out of your way and you should go a different route.

No matter which way you go, there will be traffic. There's so many people on the road. So. Many. People.

Of your options, I'd say Atlantic Ave is the best, BQE South to Belt is the worst (you'd be looping south and backtracking, traveling with traffic).

On preview: do what I used to do.
posted by AlisonM at 9:30 PM on October 5, 2011

But Atlantic is a bone-jarring, pothole-laden mess through Bed Stuy and Brownsville, if that's what you mean by "road conditions."
posted by dixiecupdrinking at 9:31 PM on October 5, 2011

Yes, Atlantic Ave shook my window loose once.
posted by antipode12 at 9:33 PM on October 5, 2011

But Atlantic is a bone-jarring, pothole-laden mess

And that's why my car used to make sweet sweet love Eastern Parkway.

I need to go to sleep
posted by AlisonM at 9:33 PM on October 5, 2011

Atlantic/ Eastern all the way east? Or pick up the Jackie Robinson?
posted by antipode12 at 9:35 PM on October 5, 2011

Eastern Pkwy to Pitkin (or Atlantic, if you want, but Pitkin is more direct) to Conduit to the Belt/Southern State. The Jackie will take you up north and out of your way.

There will be traffic no matter what. The earlier you can leave, the better.
posted by AlisonM at 9:39 PM on October 5, 2011

Good point, but the North/ South aspect is less important in Nassau county. If i'm north on the LIE, I can. Hit the South Shore in 7 minutes by taking the Meadowbrook pkwy south. So i'm less concerned about that, and more concerned about ovall travel time. Thanks!
posted by antipode12 at 9:43 PM on October 5, 2011

the North/ South aspect is less important in Nassau county.

One last post since you're traveling during rush hour....you won't want to end up going east on the Grand Central or LIE anytime after 3:00. And the whole Jackie/Van Wyck/Grand Central/LIE interchange/orgin of hell situation is just effin' obnoxious. I live in NW Queens and know it well. Stay south unless you have to go north.
posted by AlisonM at 9:52 PM on October 5, 2011

I lived in Park Slope-ish Brooklyn for a long time, much of that while my parents lived on the South Shore. I always took the Belt to the Southern State. I've literally tried every possible route....I've hauled out the atlases, used the GPS, everything. All your options suck.

I know you said you're travelling at rush hour, but I'm very partial to going at very off hours. I'll gladly get up an hour early to save myself two hours in traffic (And I'll REALLY gladly get up at 3 am to do so, but I have no kids or other hassles). Having done this for years, I can honestly tell you that going home, packing leisurely, then having a slow-ish dinner out and then leaving at 730, 8pm is roughly comparable to spending three hours in teeth-grinding, foot-stomping, pulse-pounding stop-and-go traffic, and you'll be in a much better head when you arrive.

All this being said, I used to take Ocean pkwy or 4th ave to the Belt to the Southern State. If you time it right and don't live on the accelerator, you can almost time it so you don't have to stop at too many lights.
posted by nevercalm at 9:59 PM on October 5, 2011

The Belt is always a nightmare. It's congested 24 hours a day.

The Atlantic Avenue pavement is rough, and you have to dodge under the railroad tracks, with many traffic lights to deal with.

I used to drive every day from the Parade Grounds to Rockville Centre and found that the fastest way was to take Linden Boulevard to the Southern State.

From the Slope, take whatever avenue is convenient and turn left on Prospect Avenue all the way to the end (just before the firehouse), turn left on Greenwood Ave. 3 blocks to Prospect Park Southwest. Go 3/4 of the way around the traffic circle to Parkside.

Avoid Caton Ave., which is always jammed with trucks.

Take Parkside across Coney Island Avenue to Bedford. Turn right 3 blocks and then left on Linden. If the Linden traffic lights are out of sync (which they often are), turn left after a few blocks (say at 37th St.) and go one block Lenox Rd. Go right on Lenox to East 57th (almost all the way to Kings Highway) and turn right one block and then left on Linden.

Stay in the middle lane on Linden to avoid the many drains and potholes in the side lanes. Go to the end and go right on South Conduit. Beware the traffic lights, which have red light cameras. Continue underneath the overpass and bear right at the JFK exit and get on the Southern State.

Continue to on the SS around through the nasty left bend under the railroad tracks. Keep left to avoid the Cross Island turnoff and continue to Eagle Avenue exit. Follow Eagle around and to right on Peninsula Boulevard to the Sunrise Highway. Exit the Sunrise on Merrick Road to the Long Beach exit.
posted by KRS at 10:17 AM on October 6, 2011