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CT to NJ Supercharger Route Recommendations?

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Half Dollar Bill

Traveller, teacher, poet, accountant, innkeeper
Oct 19, 2013
1,970
3,697
Freeport Maine
We'll be vacationing in the New Haven CT area and I'm looking for recommendations on how to get to the Hamilton NJ supercharger from New Haven for our return trip (we will arrive via a different route). I know I'll need to stop at a CT supercharger before Hamilton, but which one and then what's the best way to get from there to Hamilton? Just follow the Tesla nav directions or go off-script? Recommendations before 8/1 will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks kindly. Bill
 
We'll be vacationing in the New Haven CT area and I'm looking for recommendations on how to get to the Hamilton NJ supercharger from New Haven for our return trip (we will arrive via a different route). I know I'll need to stop at a CT supercharger before Hamilton, but which one and then what's the best way to get from there to Hamilton? Just follow the Tesla nav directions or go off-script? Recommendations before 8/1 will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks kindly. Bill

That's 189 miles and should be doable in an 85 if you keep your speed down and don't hit traffic.
Since you're going through the NYC metro region you can't assume anything...

When Tesla put the superchargers on I95 I complained because it is such a congested highway.
As I told them "no one goes that way it is too crowded...". I'd cut over from I95 to the Merritt Pkwy
just around Milford, CT since the Merritt is usually better traffic-wise and the Greenwich SC is the
most southerly one (by a few miles, so it is negligent).

(Look ahead on the maps and decide which route is smoother, continuing south on the Merritt or taking I95 to the Darien, CT SC, a good navigator helps here).

In general the Merritt will be the best way to go but I've seen horrible road closures on the Merritt.
Once you get your charge in Darien or Greenwich your route will depend on what time of day and day of the week...

If you're heading towards NYC during rush hour "fagetaboutit" :) I'm going to assume this is a weekday after rush hour or a weekend...

There are two ways to go, Tappan Zee or George Washington Bridge. I prefer the latter because it is shorter but it can be busier. Again this is where a good navigator can help.

Anyway, assuming you're coming down the Merritt take I287 W to the Tappan Zee. (I287 continues west and goes a bit north and then you get on the Garden State Pwky and head slightly EAST...which drives me nuts so I hate this way).
If I'm ever stuck taking the Tappan Zee I get off immediately after crossing the bridge and take 9W south to the Palisades Interstate Pkwy to I95 S....but people call me an extremist...

For the GWB continue on the Merritt to the Hutchinson River Pkwy (same road, the name changes)
to the Cross County Pkwy to the Saw Mill River Pkwy to the Henry Hudson Pkwy (same road, the name changes).
This goes right under the bridge and gets you on at the last instant before NJ but there is an extra toll on the Henry Hudson.

I'll leave it to the navigator to get you the rest of the way...

I drive from Boston to Philly regularly and grew up in northern NJ and used to commute to not far from Greenwich, CT!
I love all those roads...

Have fun!

/Ed

PS: The New Jersey Turnpike stinks in the summer. If you're stuck in traffic and far enough south to cut over to Route 1 (where it parallels the Turnpike) you may want to take this way, speed limit about 50 or 55 with some lights but I much prefer that over not moving. Again, navigator comes in handy :)
 
I agree with EdA about the different routes but wanted to mention if you charge up in Greenwich Ct, it looks as if u will have between 90 and 104 miles between Greenwich and the Hamilton Supercharger (depending on routes) which should be sufficient for NY/NJ traffic and delays. If you do aim to go over the GWB, the Henry Hudson Parkway has l views of the Palisades and quick access onto the GWB. Once in NJ, follow the map to the Hamilton supercharger. Once you are charged up at Hamilton, you can take I-295 all the way to Delaware instead of heading back to the Turnpike. Hope you have an EZ Pass because traveling through NJ/NY is toll heavy
 
I agree with EdA about the different routes but wanted to mention if you charge up in Greenwich Ct, it looks as if u will have between 90 and 104 miles between Greenwich and the Hamilton Supercharger (depending on routes) which should be sufficient for NY/NJ traffic and delays. If you do aim to go over the GWB, the Henry Hudson Parkway has l views of the Palisades and quick access onto the GWB. Once in NJ, follow the map to the Hamilton supercharger. Once you are charged up at Hamilton, you can take I-295 all the way to Delaware instead of heading back to the Turnpike. Hope you have an EZ Pass because traveling through NJ/NY is toll heavy

Right, not sure how I missed this. You should be golden to go all the way to Delaware with a full charge in Greenwich.
(The last time I was in Greenwich I coached a new owner to do just that). My first supercharged roadtrip was before
Greenwich was opened and I went from Darien directly to Delaware. (Hamilton is very new).

Just don't go over 74MPH (my preferred setting) and stay on cruise control. It is a very flat ride once you get to NJ.

PS: My in-laws live near Hamilton and I think because of that I thought you had that area in mind as a destination.
 
For the GWB continue on the Merritt to the Hutchinson River Pkwy (same road, the name changes)
to the Cross County Pkwy to the Saw Mill River Pkwy to the Henry Hudson Pkwy (same road, the name changes).
This goes right under the bridge and gets you on at the last instant before NJ but there is an extra toll on the Henry Hudson.

Quoting for truth... This is the route I've taken between NJ and CT for at least the last decade (both ways) and it's never let me down. *Sometimes* I hit traffic on the GWB going into NY, but that's expected. I find this route better than the Tappan Zee bridge, which adds quite a few miles, but not much more time.
 
If you do aim to go over the GWB, the Henry Hudson Parkway has l views of the Palisades and quick access onto the GWB.

In 1997, I lived in Westchester County but commuted, to New Jersey and the Henry Hudson was definitely the fastest route. Coming back to the GWB on the New Jersey Turnpike, it was always faster to avoid the "express" lanes and stay on the local exit side. Is this still true?
 
In 1997, I lived in Westchester County but commuted, to New Jersey and the Henry Hudson was definitely the fastest route. Coming back to the GWB on the New Jersey Turnpike, it was always faster to avoid the "express" lanes and stay on the local exit side. Is this still true?

Yes coming off the bridge, heading towards the Tpke it is better to stay in local lanes. Once on the Tpke it seems faster to go via the car lanes when it splits near the airport.
 
(LMB spouse)

ALso concur on the George Washington Bridge. I've been taking the "Delights of Five" parkways route for the last 30 years and it's almost always better than the Tappan Zee bridge or the Cross Bronx Expressway. I suspect traffic is lighter on the Henry Hudson (last parkway before bridge) because of the extra toll entering Manhattan.

HOWEVER, the Greenwich, CT, Supercharger on the Merritt Parkway can be very crowded and ICE-ing is likely. We've tried it and prefer to charge at Darien on I-95 South as it's not that much farther north.

One extra mod: we usually take US 46 through Fort Lee instead of the first few miles of the NJ Turnpike. This is particularly useful going the other direction on holiday weekends, when there can be long backups at the GW bridge tolls northbound, even without Chris Christie's help.
 
Just to reinforce, skip the Hamilton Marketplace SC. You can easily make Newark in the summer with an 85 from Darien and Greenwich.

The Turnpike Authority is resurfacing the express lanes and they are closed for much of their length. The southbound traffic at noon on the Sunday of 4th of July weekend was backed up for 7 miles where the express lanes merged back into the local lanes. It's worth looking at the traffic there for a few days at the time you intend to pass through to see if it will impact you when you make the drive. In general, get through there early in the morning or look at alternative routes.