Origin
Oakwood, NY
Morning in Oakwood on Sunday
Local time
7:02 AM
EDT
Current temp
47°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Oakwood, NY to Washington Heights, NY
Pin this tripCompiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 26, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
51m
Distance
25.2 mi
41 km
Drive Score
8/10
Great drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$4
one way
EV Charging
Good
8 stations
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 48m
★
6 AM
0h 52m
8 AM
1h 0m
10 AM
0h 55m
12 PM
0h 54m
3 PM
0h 55m
5 PM
1h 0m
8 PM
0h 49m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Oakwood, NY
Renan Tagliaferro
Washington Heights, NY
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
Oakwood, NY to Washington Heights, NY is 25.2 miles and takes about 51 minutes via Gowanus Expressway and Henry Hudson Parkway, with a fuel budget near $4 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This trip stays within New York, connecting two points in the Northeast region. The profile is mixed highway and surface roads, suggesting you’ll experience both high-speed travel and more typical urban driving. With no recommended stops and a relatively short duration, this route is well-suited for a single-day excursion.
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Gowanus Expressway | 5.5 mi | 8m |
| Henry Hudson Parkway | 4.7 mi | 7m |
| Hylan Boulevard | 3.3 mi | 9m |
| West Street | 2.4 mi | 6m |
| 12th Avenue | 1.8 mi | 5m |
| Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge | 1.3 mi | 1m |
| Staten Island Expressway | 0.9 mi | 1m |
| West Side Highway | 0.8 mi | 1m |
Longest stretch:
Gowanus Expressway
— 5.5 mi, about 8m
Traffic on I-278
Hour-of-day weekday pattern from 12 FHWA count stations on your route.
Peak
4 PM
~3,452 veh/hr typical
Quietest
2 AM
~674 veh/hr
Peak-to-quiet ratio
5.1×
busier at peak than in the quiet hours
12a
6a
noon
6p
11p
Averaged across 34 weeks of 2023 FHWA Travel Monitoring Analysis System data. Weekday hours only (Mon–Fri).
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Oakwood, NY and Washington Heights, NY.
1
Start on this road
74 ft
·
10 sec
·
this road
2
Turn left onto Hylan Boulevard
3.2 mi
·
9 min
·
Hylan Boulevard
Use the left / straight lanes.
3
Turn left onto Steuben Street
0.4 mi
·
1 min
·
Steuben Street
Use the left lane.
4
Continue on Hylan Boulevard
512 ft
·
18 sec
·
Hylan Boulevard
5
Turn right onto Narrows Road South
147 ft
·
3 sec
·
Narrows Road South
6
Take the ramp
0.2 mi
·
30 sec
Toward I 278 Toll East: Verrazano Bridge, Brooklyn
Use the slight left / straight lanes.
7
Merge onto I 278
0.1 mi
·
12 sec
·
Staten Island Expressway
8
Keep slight left at fork onto I 278
0.7 mi
·
1 min
·
Staten Island Expressway
Toward Upper Level
9
Continue on I 278
1.3 mi
·
1 min
·
Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge
10
Continue on I 278
5.5 mi
·
8 min
·
Gowanus Expressway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
11
Keep slight left at fork
2.3 mi
·
4 min
Exit 25
Toward Hugh L Carey Tunnel, Manhattan
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
12
Keep slight right at fork
230 ft
·
10 sec
Toward NY 9A North: West Street, Holland Tunnel, Lincoln Tunnel, George Washington Bridge
Use the right lane.
13
At end of road, turn right onto NY 9A
2.4 mi
·
6 min
·
West Street
Use the right lane.
14
Continue on NY 9A
0.4 mi
·
1 min
·
11th Avenue
Use the straight lane.
15
Continue on NY 9A
1.8 mi
·
5 min
·
12th Avenue
Use the straight / right lanes.
16
Continue on NY 9A
0.8 mi
·
1 min
·
West Side Highway
17
Continue on HH; NY 9A
4.7 mi
·
7 min
·
Henry Hudson Parkway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
18
Take the exit
0.6 mi
·
1 min
Exit 14
Toward I 95: George Washington Brigde
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
19
Keep slight right at fork
277 ft
·
6 sec
Toward West 178th Street
Use the slight right lane.
20
Continue on US 9
0.2 mi
·
39 sec
·
West 178th Street
Use the straight / right lanes.
21
Turn left onto US 9
0.2 mi
·
34 sec
·
Broadway
Use the straight / left lanes.
22
Arrive at destination
US 9
Heads-up: tricky spots
5 of 135 decision points cluster between mile 3.8 and 24.8 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.
7
3.8 mi into trip
|
~10m in
Take the ramp toward I 278 Toll East: Verrazano Bridge, Brooklyn
Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the slight left / straight lanes.
Toward I 278 Toll East: Verrazano Bridge, Brook...
9
11.7 mi into trip
|
~22m in
Keep slight left at fork toward Hugh L Carey Tunnel, Manhattan
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
Exit 25
Toward Hugh L Carey Tunnel, Manhattan
8
14 mi into trip
|
~27m in
Keep slight right at fork toward NY 9A North: West Street, Holland Tunnel, Lincoln Tunnel, George Washington Bridge
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the right lane.
Toward NY 9A North: West Street, Holland Tunnel...
7
24.2 mi into trip
|
~49m in
Take the exit toward I 95: George Washington Brigde
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
Exit 14
Toward I 95: George Washington Brigde
7
24.8 mi into trip
|
~50m in
Keep slight right at fork toward West 178th Street
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here
Use the slight right lane.
Toward West 178th Street
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$4.10 one way
$8.19 round trip
$4.13/gal
25.4 MPG avg
9 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.47 | $4.43 | $8.87 |
| premium | $4.87 | $4.83 | $9.66 |
| diesel | $5.40 | $5.36 | $10.72 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$4
Estimated CO2 emission: 8.8 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-20.
Driving Electric?
About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 7.6 | 0 | $2.65 | $1.21 |
| Efficient EV | 6.3 | 0 | $2.20 | $1.01 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 10.1 | 0 | $3.53 | $1.61 |
Gas CO2
9 kg
EV CO2
3 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
7:02 AM
EDT
Current temp
42°F
Rain Showers
E 10 mph
97% chance
Live forecast
Flood Warning
Flood Warning issued April 25 at 8:05PM EDT until April 26 at 11:00AM EDT by NWS Buffalo NY
Flood Warning
Flood Warning issued April 25 at 1:03PM EDT by NWS Binghamton NY
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
5 degrees cooler at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
51m on the road
The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
What kind of drive is this?
About 44% of this 25.2-mile drive is on highways like the Gowanus Expressway and Henry Hudson Parkway. You'll encounter a longest stretch of 5.5 miles on the Gowanus Expressway, indicating a significant portion of continuous highway cruising. The remaining portion will be on surface streets, transitioning from faster-paced travel to more local conditions. Expect to navigate urban merging and traffic patterns as you leave the highway segments.
44% highway, the rest on surface roads — varied driving throughout.
22 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 5.5 mi on Gowanus Expressway.
How Hard Is This Drive?
9/10
This route mixes highway mileage with some local-road sections near the start or finish. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 3.8 miles in.
Driving Effort
9/10
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 13 decision points packed into just 25.2 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 51m.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 3.8 miles: Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 11.7 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 14 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 Oakwood, NY and Washington Heights, NY, road signs point toward Brooklyn, Upper Level and Manhattan.
Brooklyn
3.8 mi in
|
~10m
Upper Level
4.2 mi in
|
~11m
|
via I 278
Manhattan
11.7 mi in
|
~22m
About the Cities
Arriving in Washington Heights, 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 51m. Total distance: 25.2 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
51m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (44%). Some complex stretches to watch for.
Scenic Drive
Mixed highway & surface route profile with national parks nearby.
Frequently Asked Questions
The longest stretch is about 5.5 miles on Gowanus Expressway. 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 3.8 miles: Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 11.7 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 14 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one.
Yes — African Burial Ground National Monument, Castle Clinton National Monument and Federal Hall National Memorial (6 total within detour distance). See the National Parks section for detour distances and tips on detours.
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, EIA for fuel prices, NPS for national parks, and FHWA TMAS for hourly traffic volumes. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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