I was wondering if people had suggestions on whether around evening rush (5pm) it would be faster to drive from Long Island (I-495) via the freeways across the Throgs Neck Bridge or to try to get on the Port Jefferson ferry to Bridgeport, CT. From the map I can see that it will shave about 75 miles off the trip not counting mileage from where I am on Long Island to the ferry.

Take the ferry.

Depending on your starting point on Long Island, you might be even better off taking the ferry from Orient Point to New London.

Depends. When you say LI, are we talking Great Neck or Montauk?

At rush hour, I'd probably take the ferry anyway, but it does make a difference.

I'm right in the middle in Woodbury. The I-495 onramp is less than 1/4 mile away.

particularly at the end of the summer, with all kinds of folks driving on I-95 toward Cape Cod or Maine, and add to that (1) those that commute and (2) those that are heading for the mega-casinos just north and east of New London.

I would seriously consider the ferry at the east end of Long Island which sails to downtown New London.

We took the Bridgeport-Port Jefferson ferry a couple of years ago, after attending a concert in Bridgeport in order to go to Southampton, and it was a nice operation (at the time, it was $53 for the vehicle and two passengers). But Bridgeport to New London is something like 60 miles, and the traffic could well be a rolling back-up for that entire stretch.

I would definitely take the Ferry, but drive to Orient Point and take it from there. I-95 in Connecticut from Bridgeport to New London can still be a mess if you go that way (as opposed to take I-91 to I-84 to the MassPike which could also be congested). Just avoid most of it by taking the Orient Point ferry to New London. It's not that expensive, and worth the $, especially at rush hour.

Oh, and call them and make a reservation! Peak times it could be booked full.

https://www.longislandferry.com

Another vote for the Orient Point Ferry. And definitely reserve ahead.

I'm right in the middle in Woodbury. The I-495 onramp is less than 1/4 mile away.

I'd say take the road. its more flexible and Woodbury is not too far East
on LI.

If you take Ferry, you will still have some drive on LI via local roads and LIE
(and/or northern state)


If you want to take a ferry, take the Orient point ferry.
You'll avoid most of the CT traffic and the drive on the north fork
is pretty nice.

First, if you do drive at rush hour, stay off 95 if you are in a car. 95 is often backed up from exit 2 to 27 (Greenwich to Bridgeport), take the Merritt which you can usually cruise at 70 most of the way to Fairfield, with slowdowns just a couple exits there.

You can cut over in Milford to 95.

that being said, and I live right off the Merritt, rush hour is not the time to be taking any of those roads. If you are talking Friday rush hour, that's even worse. Holiday Friday, well forget it.

Make a reservation, take the ferry to New London and save yourself potentially hours and hours of stop and go.

Thanks for the tips. This is actually for tonight (Wed) so hopefully traffic will not be as bad as this weekend.

Take the ferry. Otherwise, remember to pack a colostomy bag and some good reading. Good luck!

peace,
Ben

I left just before 4pm and could have either made it to the Port Jefferson ferry for the 5pm ferry or the Orient Point ferry at 6pm. I opted for the Orient Point ferry. One thing that should not be minimized is that 34 miles of semi-rural one-lane road that varies in speed limit between 40-55mph (mainly 40-45). It is quite scenic which is nice and there are plenty of stands on the roadside where you could pick up pretty much any type of produce at this time of the year.

I had a nice drive to the ferry aside from one vigilante who was going 40mph no matter what the speed limit was. Fortunately I only ran into him in the last couple of miles. The drive up I-95 was actually quite smooth until I got into the greater Boston area. They're doing roadwork where I-95 and I-93 split off so that temporarily slowed me down. Plus I-93 is also undergoing roadwork south of Boston.

I think the Port Jefferson ferry may have gotten me home slightly faster but there's no way for me to gauge how bad the traffic on I-81 would have been around 6:30pm. There really wasn't much by the time I got to New London tonight. It was a nice scenic drive out to a part of Long Island that I'm not likely to visit again soon though so worth the slight detour.

But for the most expedient option one may wish to opt for the Port Jefferson ferry vs. the Orient Point ferry, depending on traffic near Bridgeport.

I think the Port Jefferson ferry may have gotten me home slightly faster ...

Gotta say that the ferries (both Orient Point and Port Jeff) are really not timesavers at all....but the stress they save is immeasurable!

Yes, getting stuck behind a local out in the North Fork area really stinks....I swear they know the ferry schedules and purposely clog the roads to piss the 'tourists' off.

I completely agree, my drive back was essentially stress free. I even managed to have a bite to eat on the ferry and get some work done. The only real "stress" was self-induced as I was driving in the left lane through Rhode Island. And I mean real driving as in no radio, both hands on the wheel and checking mirrors although with a reasonable speed..

If I end up going to Long Island by car again I'm going to try the Port Jefferson ferry next time just for a change.