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Merrick Road

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Merrick Road
Merrick Boulevard; Floyd H. Flake Boulevard
At Linden Boulevard in Queens
Map
NamesakeAlgonquin word for oyster bed; community leader Floyd H. Flake
TypeMajor surface street
Maintained byNYCDOT, Nassau County DPW, NYSDOT
Length21.8 mi (35.1 km)[1]
Component
highways
CR 27 from Valley Stream to East Massapequa
NY 27A from East Massapequa to Copiague
Location Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties
Nearest metro stationJamaica Center-Parsons/Archer station
West end NY 25 in Jamaica
Major
junctions
Belt Parkway in Laurelton
NY 27 in Rockville Centre
Meadowbrook State Parkway in Freeport
Wantagh State Parkway in Wantagh
NY 135 in Seaford
East end NY 27A on the AmityvilleCopiague line

Merrick Road is an east–west urban arterial in Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk counties in New York, United States. It is known as Merrick Boulevard or Floyd H. Flake Boulevard in Queens, within New York City.

Merrick Road runs east from the Queens neighborhood of Jamaica through Merrick past the county line between Nassau and Suffolk into Amityville, where it becomes Montauk Highway at the AmityvilleCopiague village/hamlet line. The easternmost portion of Merrick Road, from Carman Mill Road to its eastern terminus, signed as part of New York State Route 27A (NY 27A). At one time, the entire length of Merrick Road was signed as NY 27A; currently, the entire portion within Nassau County is currently designated as the unsigned County Route 27 (CR 27).[2] Merrick Road travels along an old right-of-way that was one of the original paths across southern Long Island, stretching from Queens to Montauk Point.

Merrick Road's name comes from the Algonquin word "Meroke", meaning "oyster bed".[3] The section of Merrick Boulevard in Queens was renamed Floyd H. Flake Boulevard in October 2020, in honor of Floyd Flake, senior pastor of the Greater Allen A. M. E. Cathedral of New York in Jamaica.

Route description

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Merrick Road Historic Marker 20240919 135437

Merrick Boulevard, also known as Floyd H. Flake Boulevard, begins at NY 25 (Hillside Avenue) as a two-lane, one-way street heading eastbound (compass south at this point), which continues north of Hillside Avenue as 166th Street. Two blocks to the south of Hillside Avenue, Merrick Boulevard passes by the Central Branch of the Queens Library and the 165th Street Bus Terminal. A block to its east, 168th Street provides for westbound traffic. Just south of Liberty Avenue, the two directions join together to form a four-lane, divided Merrick Boulevard. Among the parks that the road passes are Proctor-Hopson Circle, St. Albans Park, and Roy Wilkins Park. Merrick Boulevard gradually turns southeast and east, passing through Springfield Gardens, Laurelton and crossing the Belt Parkway before leaving Queens into Nassau County, where it becomes Merrick Road.[1] The section of Merrick Boulevard in Queens was renamed Floyd H. Flake Boulevard in October 2020, in honor of Floyd Flake, senior pastor of the Greater Allen A. M. E. Cathedral of New York in Jamaica.[4][5]

Near Jamaica, 1890s

Merrick Road is one of the old roads along the southern side of Long Island; it has since been replaced by Sunrise Highway (NY 27) for most through traffic.[1] At Rockville Centre, bridges take it over NY 27, with four directional ramps forming a partial interchange. Farther east, it serves as the southern end for state roads such as NY 107, NY 110, and the Seaford–Oyster Bay Expressway (NY 135).[1]

NY 27A begins as a split from NY 27 in East Massapequa, where NY 27 leaves the original Sunrise Gold Circle, which is now Old Sunrise Highway (unsigned NY 900D) east of the split. NY 27A quickly turns south off Old Sunrise Highway onto Carman Mill Road, which ends at Merrick Road. Merrick Road from that point east continues through Massapequa over the Nassau/Suffolk border into Amityville, Suffolk County, where it becomes Montauk Highway at the Amityville/Copiague village/hamlet line.[1] Amityville is the only town in Suffolk County where southernmost major road is known as Merrick Road (it is known as Montauk Highway in every other settlement along the South Shore of Suffolk County.

Both the Meadowbrook State Parkway and the Wantagh State Parkway have interchanges with Merrick Road. A truck needing to make a delivery to the barrier beaches along Ocean Parkway may enter the Meadowbrook southbound at this road and at no point farther north.[1]

Transportation

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The Q5 is the main option for public transportation in Queens, running on Merrick Boulevard between Archer Avenue and Hook Creek Boulevard. The Q84 and the Q85 both serve Merrick Boulevard between Archer Avenue and Baisley Boulevard, and the Q4 serves it between Archer Avenue and Linden Boulevard. Other routes serving the boulevard include the Q1, Q2, Q3, Q6, Q8, Q9, Q17, Q20A, Q20B, Q36, Q41, Q44, Q76, Q77, X63, n1, n6/n6x, n22/n22x, n24, and n26.

The n4/n4x is the main mode of public transportation on Merrick Road in Nassau County, serving it between Jamaica Center Bus Terminal and Freeport LIRR, running closed door service in Queens, with the n19 serving Merrick Road between Freeport LIRR and Unqua Road. A portion of the road is also served by the n1.

Major intersections

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CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
QueensJamaica0.000.00 NY 25 (Hillside Avenue)
0.300.48Jamaica Avenue
St. Albans1.602.57Linden Boulevard
3.305.31Springfield Boulevard
Laurelton4.106.60Francis Lewis Boulevard
4.407.08
Belt Parkway east – Whitestone Bridge
Access via Brookville Boulevard; exit 24B on Belt Parkway
NassauRockville Centre8.9014.32 NY 27 (Sunrise Highway)Interchange; same-directional access only
Freeport13.6021.89 Meadowbrook State Parkway – MineolaExit M9 on Meadowbrook Parkway
Wantagh16.7026.88 Wantagh State Parkway – Westbury, Jones BeachExit W6 on Wantagh Parkway
Seaford17.7028.49
NY 135 north – Syosset
Southern terminus and exits 1E-W on NY 135
Massapequa18.6029.93
NY 107 north
Southern terminus of NY 107
East Massapequa21.0033.80
NY 27A west
Western end of NY 27A concurrency
SuffolkAmityville
NY 110 north (Broadway)
Southern terminus of NY 110
AmityvilleCopiague
village/hamlet line
21.8035.08
NY 27A east (Montauk Highway)
Eastern terminus; eastern end of NY 27A concurrency
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Merrick Boulevard / Road" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved May 30, 2015.[dead link]
  2. ^ "Merrick Road - Nassau CR 27". Greater New York Roads. Retrieved April 1, 2010.[self-published source]
  3. ^ Cusanelli, Michael; Weiss, Rachel; Doyle, Heather; Stark, Ian J. (January 26, 2019). "How 60 LI communities got their names". Newsday. Archived from the original on July 24, 2021. Retrieved 2020-12-04.
  4. ^ Gannon, Michael (October 5, 2020). "Merrick Boulevard renamed for Floyd Flake". Queens Chronicle. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
  5. ^ Maisel, Todd (October 5, 2020). "Hundreds jam Queens street for roadway renaming honoring longtime leader Floyd Flake". amNewYork. Retrieved 2020-12-04.
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