Hmmm. I live in upstate NY and I agree it takes me 3 hours from Syracuse to BUF. The thruway was closed also.

I read this earlier and was skeptical. I was in Niagara Falls ONT when the storm hit and ended up crossing back into the US via the Lewiston bridge around noon. I then took a county road back to Rochester before I could get on a main highway. I drive fast and stopped only for gas and quick breaks. I arrived at the Hertz counter in EWR at 9:15.

Now the Hertz story is for another thread :rolleyes:

The thruway was closed in both directions all morning and afternoon on Friday. I'm going to call BS too.

I have to call BS here as well.

I have driven BUF - NYC in the past, even on a good day 6 hrs is pushing it.

Besides, if he posted at 8:20, then finally picked up the car - he didn't leave till 9 ish.

first gotta get out of BUF,
then gotta drive on a closed highway

No way.

I checked using Microsoft Streets & Trips 2006 -- BUF - NYC is possible in 6 hours and 5 mins (627.9 km) if he took I-90 to Syracuse then I-81 to I-380 then onto NYC using I-80 which turns into 280 near NYC. He had to have taken some bypass roads as well if he knew the area extremely well or had a very good map guide (would have to be the case otherwise he'd have a lot longer drive ahead of him)

Sanosuke!

I went to school in buffalo and lived in NJ right near the GWB. It was 380 miles from my house and IIRC it usually took me about 6 hours driving fast with one gas/fast food stop along the way.

I wouldn't take "6 hours" to mean exactly 6 hours but 6++.

Estimating the time by adding Albany to Buffalo and Albany to NYC is not accurate because the Throughway is the longest way to travel between the 2 cities.

Keba

Yeah, all I was pointing out was that it was a possiblity. I have driven NYC to Niagara falls almost 20 years ago, but not since.

I recall being in a car where it was done in less than the more standard 7-8 hours... but that was summer time and the car was going 90-95 mph for a good part of the trip.

Interview on Saturday morning? Very nice prospective employer.

Not to belabor the point, but the key factor is getting out of the airport. The entire area was effectively closed. If one could rent a SUV from Avis at BUF there is no way you could have gone east from the airport. All roads were closed to non emergency traffic. There were no open roads leading east from the time of the storm. The Thruway was closed, Rt 5 was closed. And any other alternative east bound routes that were open were inaccessible from the airport. Particularly due to the gridlock of traffic stuck in the snow.

No way no how.

That's the route I took once I was able to get to Rochester.

Pfft... Can't be worse than X-Mas of '01.

Threads like this will make me feel guilty turning on my air conditioner tonight. :D For a very short while.

Trying to remember why I live in Florida not BUF? Something to do with 20 feet less snow per year, 1999.5 feet less snow per century? Yea, that's it. :D

Stay warm.

Really? Not me. Not even for a second.

But, I am really, really curious as to how Jaredg made it all the way to New York City, New York, after that blizzard in time for the interview. I mean, not only would one have to make the drive in around 6 hours, we haven't even accounted for issues such as getting into Manhattan and to the interview, which can take a significant amount of time! I'd love to hear more details, but, since Jaredg only has three posts in ~2.3 years, two of which came in this thread, I fear we might never get the details! I hate to flat out call BS on someone in this forum, so I will say that I'm impressed!