Driving cross town at rush hour....sigh

I arrive at JFK about 4 pm on Thursday. By the time I get luggage and pick up the car I will be leaving the airport about 5 pm. I have to drive cross town to Paramus N.J. at that time.

I know this is insane, but I have no other option.

I was thinking I would drive (crawl) north on the Van Wyck, cross the Whitestone bridge and head west on the Cross Bronx to the GWB.

i know there has been construction on the Whitestone and it causes delays. Would it make any sense to take the Belt pkwy from JFK to the Cross Island and take the Throgs Neck bridge to the Cross Bronx? Or will it be just as bad as the Van Wyck-Whitestone?

I know there won%26#39;t be any ';good'; way to do this, but I would be grateful for any suggestions.

Driving cross town at rush hour....sigh

I would avoid the Cross Bronx at any time of the day so consider taking the Van Wyck to the Grand Central Parkway to the TriBoro Bridge to the Major Deegan to the GW Bridge.

I have never been on the Van Wyck when it didn%26#39;t crawl to the city. The Grand Central will move until you get near the Tri Boro. The Deegan will be slow as you approach the ramp to the GW Bridge.

Driving cross town at rush hour....sigh

I would:

1)Consider driving to the beach or elsewhere near JFK and waiting til 7 to start the trip (assuming you know your way).

2)Head to Manhattan by train and pick up a rental car there (it might actually be cheaper without airport fees). By the time you get to the city and a car place, the worst of rush hour will be over.

You really really don%26#39;t want to be on the Van Wyck period.

In fact, you have several other options, most of which strike me as much better than the horror of driving to Paramus from JFK at rush hour.

1) Take the Air Train to Jamaica, and the Long Island Rail Road to Penn Station. Take New Jersey Transit to North Hackensack or River Edge. Take a taxi the short distance to Paramus. (This trikes me as the best option at that hour.)

2) Take the Air Train and the LIRR to Manhattan. Rent the car there, and proceed into Jersey.

3) Take the LIRR to Penn Station, and then NJ Transit to Newark Liberty. Rent the car on the Jersey side of the river, and give no thought to the problems of tunnel traffic at that hour.

If you (foolishly, to my mind) insist on renting a car at JFK, you do not want either the Whiteston or the Cross Bronx. Instead, either go through Manhattan (yes, I know this sounds wrong -- but traffic on the Long Island Expressway heading west at that hour really isn%26#39;t so bad) and take the Midtown tunnel to the Lincoln tunnel, or else go up the Grand Central to the Triborough Bridge, and then use either the Deegan or the harlem River Drive to get to the George Washington Bridge.

A train, however, is a MUCH better option.

Traffic reports, AM radio:

880 They report on the :08, :18, :28 of the hour

1010 Reports on the :10 and every 10 minutes

1050 Reports on the :05, and every ten minutes

It%26#39;s all bad, put on your patience hat, have some cold water and enjoy the sights.

Here is a hint: in case you can make it over to the FDR and Harlem River Drive, you can get off at 135th Street, make your way over to Broadway via north on St Nicholas. Take Broadway to 179th Street. Turn left at the big Port Authority building there and in two minutes you will be ON the upper deck of the bridge. I love that shortcut. I hate the run up to the GWB (no offense GWB).

Thanks folks!

I have been following the online traffic for rush hour this evening, and it looks like the LIE into the city is the way to go. So i think I%26#39;ll take this and stop in the Murray Hill area for dinner, then go east either through the Lincoln tunnel or up the westside to the GWB after dinner.

Now if I only can find a place to park.......