In 1954, the New York State Department of Public Works proposed a six-lane, north-south expressway between the Wantagh State Parkway in Wantagh and NY 106 in Oyster Bay.
The route of the expressway was defined by the department, and later amended by the New York State Department of Transportation as follows: Beginning at a point on the Wantagh State Parkway in the vicinity of the hamlet of Wantagh, thence running generally through or near the hamlets of Seaford, Bethpage and Plainview to a point on state highway nine thousand twenty-one (NY 106) south of the village of Oyster Bay.
The expressway was so divisive that it was met with protest in each of the communities it was to pass. Right-of-way acquisition began in 1958, and construction began one year later. The section between exit 14 (NY 25 / Jericho Turnpike) and exit 10 (Old Country Road) was completed in 1962. The next section, between exit 10 and exit 4 (Southern State Parkway) was completed in 1963. With the opening of the section between exit 4 and exit 1 (Merrick Road) in the fall of 1969, the entire 10.8-mile route of the expressway was completed at a cost of $49 million.
The southbound lanes are higher than the northbound lanes between exits 8 and 9. This was to be where the Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway and the unbuilt portion of the Bethpage State Parkway were to connect. The southbound lanes of the Bethpage State Parkway were to have been in the median of NY 135 for about one-half mile before heading back southeast, while the northbound lanes of the parkway followed the northbound lanes of NY 135 along the right shoulder. This assumed that the Bethpage State Parkway would be upgraded to a four-lane divided parkway, which never happened.
There haven’t been many changes to the expressway since it was originally built. One big change was made to one of its major interchanges. The interchange between the Seaford-Oyster Bay and Long Island expressways, which was originally built between 1959 and 1961, was reconstructed with new flyover ramps and overpasses in 1997.
When it was first built, NY 135 was known as the "Wantagh-Oyster Bay Expressway." In 1967, its name was changed to the "Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway" to avoid confusion with the parallel Wantagh State Parkway. On March 21, 2002, the highway was ceremonially named the "Ralph Marino Expressway" in honor of the longtime state senator.
Source:
“Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway.” Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway (NY 135), www.nycroads.com/roads/NY-135/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.