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Trip from Washington Heights, NY to Hillside, NY

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Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 26, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

26m

Distance

17.4 mi

28 km

Drive Score

8/10

Great drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$3

one way

EV Charging

Fair

2 stations

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 7 min
4 AM
0h 24m ★
6 AM
0h 26m
8 AM
0h 31m
10 AM
0h 28m
12 PM
0h 28m
3 PM
0h 28m
5 PM
0h 31m
8 PM
0h 25m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

Best Time Drive vs Fly
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Downtown Washington Heights, NY, NY

Washington Heights, NY

Wikimedia Commons

Downtown Hillside, NY, NY

Hillside, NY

Renan Tagliaferro

Trip Overview

Washington Heights, NY to Hillside, NY is 17.4 miles and takes about 26 minutes via Cross Bronx Expressway and Clearview Expressway, with a fuel budget near $3 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This trip stays within New York, connecting two points in the Northeast region. Given its short distance and duration, it's a straightforward drive perfect for a quick commute or a brief excursion. You'll be spending most of your time on the highway, so plan for typical urban expressway conditions.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
Cross Bronx Expressway 6.1 mi 8m
Clearview Expressway 5 mi 5m
Hillside Avenue 2.1 mi 3m
Throgs Neck Bridge 2 mi 3m
Throgs Neck Expressway 0.6 mi <1m
Washington Bridge 0.4 mi 1m
171st Street 0.3 mi 1m
West 181st Street 0.2 mi <1m
Longest stretch: Cross Bronx Expressway — 6.1 mi, about 8m

Traffic on I-95

Hour-of-day weekday pattern from 13 FHWA count stations on your route.

Peak

7 AM

~4,026 veh/hr typical

Quietest

2 AM

~1,234 veh/hr

Peak-to-quiet ratio

3.3×

busier at peak than in the quiet hours

12a 6a noon 6p 11p

Averaged across 21 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 Washington Heights, NY and Hillside, NY.

1

Start on US 9

302 ft · 20 sec · Broadway
2

Turn left onto West 180th Street

293 ft · 17 sec · West 180th Street
3

Turn left onto Wadsworth Avenue

293 ft · 12 sec · Wadsworth Avenue
4

Turn right onto West 181st Street

0.2 mi · 41 sec · West 181st Street
5

Continue on Washington Bridge

0.4 mi · 1 min · Washington Bridge
Use the straight lane.
6

Take the ramp

0.4 mi · 44 sec
Toward I 95 North: Cross Bronx Expressway, New England, Eastern Long Island
7

Merge onto I 95; US 1

4.1 mi · 5 min · Cross Bronx Expressway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
8

Keep slight right at fork onto I 295

2.0 mi · 2 min · Cross Bronx Expressway
Exit 6B Toward I 295 South: Throgs Neck Bridge Use the straight / slight left lanes.
9

Merge onto I 295

0.6 mi · 58 sec · Throgs Neck Expressway
10

Continue on I 295

2.0 mi · 3 min · Throgs Neck Bridge
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
11

Continue on I 295

5.0 mi · 5 min · Clearview Expressway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
12

Turn right onto NY 25

2.1 mi · 3 min · Hillside Avenue
Use the right lane.
13

Turn left onto 171st Street

0.3 mi · 1 min · 171st Street
Use the left lane.
14

At end of road, turn left onto Jamaica Avenue

0.1 mi · 9 sec · Jamaica Avenue
15

Arrive at destination

Jamaica Avenue

Heads-up: tricky spots

5 of 10

5 decision points cluster between mile 0.1 and 5.3 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.

5
0.1 mi into trip | ~0m in | West 180th Street

Turn left onto West 180th Street

Navigation decision point

5
0.1 mi into trip | ~0m in | Wadsworth Avenue

Turn left onto Wadsworth Avenue

Navigation decision point

5
0.2 mi into trip | ~0m in | West 181st Street

Turn right onto West 181st Street

Navigation decision point

5
1.1 mi into trip | ~3m in | I 95; US 1 / Cross Bronx Expressway

Merge onto I 95; US 1 / Cross Bronx Expressway

Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / slight right lanes.
8
5.3 mi into trip | ~8m in | I 295 / Cross Bronx Expressway

Keep slight right at fork onto I 295 / Cross Bronx Expressway toward I 295 South: Throgs Neck Bridge

Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / slight left lanes. Exit 6B Toward I 295 South: Throgs Neck Bridge

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$2.83 one way

$5.66 round trip

$4.13/gal 25.4 MPG avg 6 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $4.47 $3.06 $6.12
premium $4.87 $3.33 $6.67
diesel $5.40 $3.70 $7.40

Estimated Tolls: $6.55

Throgs Neck Bridge $6.55

Toll estimates based on average 2024-2025 rates. EZ-Pass/SunPass discounts may lower the actual cost.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$3

Tolls

$7

Total

$9

Estimated CO2 emission: 6.1 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-20.

Driving Electric?

About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 5.2 0 $1.83 $0.84
Efficient EV 4.4 0 $1.52 $0.70
EV Truck/SUV 7 0 $2.44 $1.11

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.

Forecast as of Apr 26, 2026

Origin

Washington Heights, NY

Afternoon in Washington Heights on Sunday

Local time

12:05 PM

EDT

Current temp

57°F

Partly Sunny

NE 10 mph 12% chance Live forecast

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 26 at 12:24AM EDT by NWS Binghamton NY

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 25 at 8:05PM EDT until April 26 at 11:00AM EDT by NWS Buffalo NY

Destination

Hillside, NY

Afternoon in Hillside on Sunday

Local time

12:05 PM

EDT

Current temp

57°F

Partly Sunny

NE 13 mph 17% chance Live forecast

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 26 at 12:24AM EDT by NWS Binghamton NY

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 25 at 8:05PM EDT until April 26 at 11:00AM EDT by NWS Buffalo 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

Very similar conditions

Both ends of the route are sitting at about the same temperature right now.

Road read

26m 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?

With 67% of this 17.4-mile route on highways, you'll experience primarily expressway driving. The longest continuous stretch on the highway is 6.1 miles on the Cross Bronx Expressway. You'll encounter dense exits and urban merging as you navigate the expressways. The latter part of the trip will transition from highway to surface streets as you approach Hillside.

67% highway — fuel and pacing are the main things to plan.
15 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 6.1 mi on Cross Bronx Expressway.

How Hard Is This Drive?

8/10

This is a straightforward highway drive that stays mostly on Cross Bronx Expressway and Clearview Expressway. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 0.1 miles in near West 180th Street.

Driving Effort 8/10

Focused - busy navigation packed into a short drive

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

This is a short but busy drive. With 10 decision points packed into just 17.4 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 26m.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: at 0.1 miles (West 180th Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.1 miles (Wadsworth Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 0.2 miles (West 181st Street): Navigation decision point.

About the Cities

Starting in Washington Heights, NY

Full guide →

Arriving in Hillside, 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 26m. Total distance: 17.4 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

26m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

Mostly highway driving (67%). Some complex stretches to watch for.

Frequently Asked Questions

The longest stretch is about 6.1 miles on Cross Bronx Expressway. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.

Expect about $6.55 in tolls one way, starting with Throgs Neck Bridge. Most Northeast and Midwest toll agencies accept E-ZPass; in the West and Texas, transponders like TxTag or FasTrak apply. If you do not have a transponder, cashless tolling plates will mail a bill to the vehicle's registered address — usually with a surcharge, so a rental-car toll pass is often cheaper than paying by mail.

Yes — we found about 2 rest areas or service plazas within a short detour of the route (from OpenStreetMap). See the Rest Stops tab under Nearby Places for locations and mile markers. Plan to stretch, use the bathroom, and top off fluids every 2–3 hours on longer drives.

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 Hillside, 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 0.1 miles (West 180th Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.1 miles (Wadsworth Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 0.2 miles (West 181st Street): Navigation decision point.

Yes — Hamilton Grange National Memorial, General Grant National Memorial and Stonewall National Monument (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 Hillside, 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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