Origin
East Flatbush, NY
Morning in East Flatbush on Sunday
Local time
9:43 AM
EDT
Current temp
49°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from East Flatbush, NY to Washington Heights, NY
Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 19, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
36m
Distance
17 mi
27 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$3
one way
EV Charging
Fair
3 stations
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 34m
★
6 AM
0h 37m
8 AM
0h 43m
10 AM
0h 39m
12 PM
0h 38m
3 PM
0h 39m
5 PM
0h 43m
8 PM
0h 35m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
East Flatbush, NY
Wikimedia Commons
Washington Heights, NY
Renan Tagliaferro
Trip Overview
Crossing from East Flatbush to Washington Heights covers 18.5 miles across the heart of New York City. You should plan for a duration of approximately 52 minutes, though city traffic patterns will heavily influence your actual travel time. This journey is perfectly suited for a single-day trip, requiring no overnight stays or complex logistics. With an estimated fuel cost of just $3, it is an economical route for navigating between these two distinct neighborhoods. Because both ends of the trip reside within the Northeast region, you will remain in a familiar urban environment throughout the entire drive. It is a straightforward, purely local transit that connects two major boroughs without the need for long-distance highway travel.
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Harlem River Drive | 2.3 mi | 3m |
| Robert F. Kennedy Bridge | 1.9 mi | 3m |
| Fresh Pond Road | 1.5 mi | 3m |
| Brooklyn-Queens Expressway West | 1.1 mi | 2m |
| 69th Street | 1 mi | 2m |
| Brooklyn-Queens Expressway | 0.9 mi | 1m |
| Cooper Street | 0.8 mi | 2m |
| Grand Central Parkway | 0.7 mi | 1m |
Longest stretch:
Harlem River Drive
— 2.3 mi, about 3m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between East Flatbush, NY and Washington Heights, NY.
1
Start on NY 27
0.5 mi
·
49 sec
·
Linden Boulevard
2
Turn right onto Remsen Avenue
181 ft
·
5 sec
·
Remsen Avenue
3
Turn right
354 ft
·
31 sec
4
Turn left onto Remsen Avenue
196 ft
·
4 sec
·
Remsen Avenue
5
Turn right onto Kings Highway
0.5 mi
·
1 min
·
Kings Highway
Use the straight lane.
6
Continue on Tapscott Street
0.2 mi
·
22 sec
·
Tapscott Street
7
Continue on Howard Avenue
0.3 mi
·
34 sec
·
Howard Avenue
Use the straight / right lanes.
8
Turn right onto Eastern Parkway
0.5 mi
·
59 sec
·
Eastern Parkway
Use the right lane.
9
Turn left onto Rockaway Avenue
0.7 mi
·
1 min
·
Rockaway Avenue
Use the straight / left lanes.
10
Continue on Cooper Street
0.8 mi
·
2 min
·
Cooper Street
11
Continue on Cooper Avenue
0.4 mi
·
47 sec
·
Cooper Avenue
Use the straight / left lanes.
12
Continue on Cooper Avenue
0.3 mi
·
31 sec
·
Cooper Avenue
13
Turn slight left onto 62nd Street
0.2 mi
·
1 min
·
62nd Street
14
At end of road, turn left onto Myrtle Avenue
335 ft
·
11 sec
·
Myrtle Avenue
15
Turn right onto Fresh Pond Road
1.5 mi
·
3 min
·
Fresh Pond Road
Use the straight / left / right lanes.
16
At end of road, turn right onto Flushing Avenue
0.2 mi
·
17 sec
·
Flushing Avenue
17
Turn straight onto Grand Avenue
0.3 mi
·
41 sec
·
Grand Avenue
18
Turn left onto 69th Street
1.0 mi
·
2 min
·
69th Street
19
Turn left onto Queens Boulevard
285 ft
·
9 sec
·
Queens Boulevard
20
Take the ramp
0.1 mi
·
18 sec
Toward I 278 East: Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, Robert F. Kennedy Bridge
21
Merge onto I 278
0.9 mi
·
1 min
·
Brooklyn-Queens Expressway
22
Keep slight left at fork onto I 278
1.1 mi
·
2 min
·
Brooklyn-Queens Expressway West
Toward I 278 East: Triborough Bridge, Manhattan, Bronx
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
23
Merge onto GCP; I 278
0.7 mi
·
1 min
·
Grand Central Parkway
24
Continue on I 278
1.6 mi
·
2 min
·
Robert F. Kennedy Bridge
25
Take the exit
0.2 mi
·
20 sec
Exit 46
Toward Manhattan, Randalls Island
Use the slight right lane.
26
Keep slight left at fork
0.5 mi
·
1 min
Exit 46
Toward Manhattan, Randalls Island
27
Continue on Robert F. Kennedy Bridge
0.4 mi
·
41 sec
·
Robert F. Kennedy Bridge
28
Keep slight right at fork
127 ft
·
3 sec
Toward Harlem River Drive North, 125th Street, 2nd Avenue
Use the slight right lane.
29
Keep slight right at fork
0.4 mi
·
53 sec
Toward Harlem River Drive North
Use the slight right lane.
30
Merge onto HRD
2.3 mi
·
3 min
·
Harlem River Drive
31
Take the exit
0.5 mi
·
1 min
Exit 24
Toward I 95 South, US 1 South: George Washington Bridge, Amsterdam Avenue, West 179 Street
Use the slight left lane.
32
Keep slight left at fork
0.1 mi
·
22 sec
Toward Amsterdam Avenue, West 179th Street, Yeshiva University
Use the slight left / slight right lanes.
33
Turn right onto Amsterdam Avenue
125 ft
·
9 sec
·
Amsterdam Avenue
34
Turn left onto West 179th Street
0.3 mi
·
1 min
·
West 179th Street
Toward G.W. Bridge, Fort Tryon Park, Cloisters Museum
35
Turn right onto US 9
0.1 mi
·
23 sec
·
Broadway
36
Arrive at destination
US 9
Heads-up: tricky spots
5 of 255 decision points cluster between mile 8.8 and 16.5 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.
8
8.8 mi into trip
|
~20m in
|
I 278 / Brooklyn-Queens Expressway West
Keep slight left at fork onto I 278 / Brooklyn-Queens Expressway West toward I 278 East: Triborough Bridge, Manhattan, Bronx
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
Toward I 278 East: Triborough Bridge, Manhattan...
8
12.2 mi into trip
|
~27m in
Take the exit toward Manhattan, Randalls Island
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the slight right lane.
Exit 46
Toward Manhattan, Randalls Island
8
13.3 mi into trip
|
~29m in
Keep slight right at fork toward Harlem River Drive North, 125th Street, 2nd Avenue
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the slight right lane.
Toward Harlem River Drive North, 125th Street,...
8
16 mi into trip
|
~33m in
Take the exit toward I 95 South, US 1 South: George Washington Bridge, Amsterdam Avenue, West 179 Street
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the slight left lane.
Exit 24
Toward I 95 South, US 1 South: George Washingto...
8
16.5 mi into trip
|
~34m in
Keep slight left at fork toward Amsterdam Avenue, West 179th Street, Yeshiva University
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the slight left / slight right lanes.
Toward Amsterdam Avenue, West 179th Street, Yes...
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$2.80 one way
$5.60 round trip
$4.18/gal
25.4 MPG avg
6 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.52 | $3.03 | $6.05 |
| premium | $4.92 | $3.29 | $6.59 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $3.75 | $7.51 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$3
Estimated CO2 emission: 5.9 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 5.1 | 0 | $1.78 | $0.82 |
| Efficient EV | 4.3 | 0 | $1.49 | $0.68 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 6.8 | 0 | $2.38 | $1.09 |
Gas CO2
6 kg
EV CO2
2 kg (67% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Washington Heights, NY
Morning in Washington Heights on Sunday
Local time
9:43 AM
EDT
Current temp
53°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
4 degrees warmer at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
36m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
What kind of drive is this?
Expect a turn-heavy local drive rather than a high-speed interstate experience. You will navigate exclusively on surface streets, as this route has a highway share of 0%. The journey relies on a series of local connectors, including Remsen Avenue, Kings Highway, and Tapscott Street. Because you are traveling through dense urban corridors, there is no single long, uninterrupted stretch of road to cruise on. Instead, you will be managing frequent intersections and typical city traffic, making this a technical drive that requires your full attention behind the wheel.
Only 19% highway — the rest is turn-by-turn surface driving.
36 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 2.3 mi on Harlem River Drive.
How Hard Is This Drive?
10/10
Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 8.8 miles in near I 278 / Brooklyn-Queens Expressway West.
Driving Effort
10/10
Focused - lots of decisions in a short distance, but it is over quickly
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a short but busy drive. With 25 decision points packed into just 17 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 36m.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 8.8 miles (I 278 / Brooklyn-Queens Expressway West): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 12.2 miles: Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 13.3 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one.
Towns Mentioned on Route Signs
Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.
Towns Mentioned on Route Signs
Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.
Between East Flatbush, NY and Washington Heights, NY, road signs point toward Manhattan, Bronx, Randalls Island and Harlem River Drive North.
Manhattan
8.8 mi in
|
~20m
|
via I 278
Bronx
8.8 mi in
|
~20m
|
via I 278
Randalls Island
12.2 mi in
|
~27m
Harlem River Drive North
13.3 mi in
|
~29m
About the Cities
Starting in East Flatbush, NY
Full guide →City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 36m. Total distance: 17 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
36m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
Scenic Drive
Mostly surface roads route profile.
Frequently Asked Questions
The longest stretch is about 2.3 miles on Harlem River Drive. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.
It helps. This route has a higher-than-average number of complex decision points, which get harder in the dark. If the last hour of the trip is on surface roads or mountain grades, aim to arrive at Washington Heights, NY before sunset when you can. Check the Trip Plan for departure windows that land you in daylight.
Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.
The main spots that need attention: at 8.8 miles (I 278 / Brooklyn-Queens Expressway West): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 12.2 miles: Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 13.3 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one.
Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Washington Heights, NY before heading back.
How this page is built
Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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