New York State Route 98

NY 98 begins at an intersection with US 219 in Great Valley, a hamlet located northeast of Salamanca in the town of Great Valley. The route heads northeast across Cattaraugus County, paralleling Forks Creek through northeast Great Valley and the northwestern corner of Humphrey to the town of Franklinville. The creek ends southwest of the village of Franklinville; however, NY 98 continues northeast for an additional 3.5 miles (5.6 km) across sparsely populated areas to the hamlet of Cadiz, where it intersects NY 16 just south of Franklinville. Here, NY 98 joins NY 16 northward through the village to the town of Farmersville, where the two routes split.

NY 98 north from NY 78 in Waldos Corners

East of NY 16, NY 98 continues generally northeastward across rural terrain through the hamlets of Farmersville and Farmersville Station to an isolated junction east of the latter, where NY 98 intersects NY 243 at a T-intersection. While NY 243 leaves to the right (east), NY 98 turns left, initially heading northwest before curving to the north as it crosses into the town of Freedom. The route initially heads north toward the hamlet of the same name in the northeastern corner of the county, but ultimately bypasses the hamlet to the west to follow Clear Creek into Sandusky, the last settlement on NY 98 within the county. At the hamlet, NY 98 turns back to the northwest and crosses into Wyoming County and the town of Arcade.

Across the county line, the amount of development along the route increases as NY 98 enters the village of Arcade on Liberty Street. In the center of the village, NY 98 turns east to overlap with NY 39 for two long blocks along Main Street. The two routes split at Water Street, with NY 98 following the street northward across Cattaraugus Creek to a junction with North Street in the lightly populated northern portion of the village. At this point, Water Street merges into North Street, and the latter parallels the Arcade and Attica Railroad (ARA) and Cattaraugus Creek as it carries NY 98 northeastward out of the village. NY 98 follows the creek to an area of farmlands known as Arcade Center, where the route and the railroad both turn north toward Java, a mostly rural town dominated by farmland.

NY 98 heads virtually due north through Java, remaining in close proximity to the ARA up to the hamlet of Java Center. NY 98 crosses the railroad at a grade crossing just south of the hamlet before meeting NY 77 and NY 78 at a four-way junction in the center of the community. NY 77 continues north from the intersection on Cattaraugus Road while NY 98 joins NY 78 eastward on Main Street, traversing the ARA at another grade crossing on their way out of the hamlet. The overlap extends for 2.5 miles (4.0 km) across farmlands and through forests to a point once known as Five Corners, where NY 98 separates from NY 78 and turns northward once more. The route continues across a mixture of cultivated fields and forests to North Java, a small hamlet located at the junction between NY 98 and Perry and Wethersfield Roads. Not far to the north is the Java–Sheldon town line, where NY 98 curves to follow a slightly northeastward alignment across Sheldon.

Southbound on NY 98 from NY 354 in Attica

About 1.5 miles (2.4 km) into Sheldon, NY 98 passes the southern end of Tonawanda Creek, the source of which is located along the west side of NY 98. The route follows the water body along the Sheldon–Orangeville town line to a junction with US 20A just inside of the town of Orangeville. NY 98 joins US 20A here, following the latter northwestward to Varysburg, a small creekside hamlet in Sheldon. At the center of Varysburg, NY 98 leaves US 20A to follow Creek Road northward through the towns of Bennington and Attica, following the base of a large valley surrounding Tonawanda Creek. Due to the terrain of the area, the routing of NY 98 is fairly isolated from the remainder of the county until it reaches the outskirts of the village of Attica.

South of the village, the route comes within view of the Attica Correctional Facility, the site of the 1971 Attica Prison riot. The route enters the village shortly afterward, following High Street through the lightly developed southern half of Attica. The amount of development begins to increase at a junction with NY 354, known here as the Attica–Bennington Highway. One block later, NY 98 passes under the Norfolk Southern Railway's Southern Tier Line and joins NY 238 at Main Street. The junction of Main and High Streets marks the start of Attica's business district, which follows NY 98 and NY 238 north for two blocks along Market Street to Buffalo Street. Here, NY 238 leaves NY 98 to continue toward Darien while NY 98 remains on Market Street to the northern village and town lines, which also serves as the Wyoming–Genesee county line, though a small northernmost portion of the village of Attica, which NY 98 returns slightly, is in the town of Alexander.

Across the county line in the town of Alexander, NY 98 passes through lightly but consistently populated areas that serve as the suburbs of Batavia. As Alexander Road, the route meets US 20 at an interchange in the village of Alexander. The Alexander Road name remains through Alexander, past the CSX Transportation-owned Rochester Subdivision in the town of Batavia (which NY 98 passes under), and up to the Batavia city limits, leaving the town of the same name, where it becomes Walnut Street. Within the city, NY 98 continues to run through mostly residential areas as it crosses the Depew, Lancaster and Western Railroad at-grade. On the southern fringe of downtown Batavia, Walnut Street turns westward and becomes South Main Street, avoiding the nearby Tonawanda Creek. NY 98 meets NY 33 one block later, and the two routes join on Oak Street for one block to cross over Tonawanda Creek and enter the city's commercial district.

On the opposite bank, NY 33 separates from NY 98 at an intersection with West Main Street (NY 5 and NY 63), one of Batavia's main commercial strips. While NY 33 heads southeast toward downtown Batavia, NY 98 continues north on Oak Street through a residential part of the city to the northern city limits, coming back to the town of Batavia, where it connects to the New York State Thruway (I-90) via an interchange south of the Genesee County Airport. At this point, NY 98 becomes Oak Orchard Road and heads through progressively less developed areas to the village of Elba, located in an area of the town of Elba dominated by open farmland. NY 98 overlaps NY 262 through the southern fringe of the village before continuing through Elba as Main Street. Just north of the village limits, Oak Orchard Road leaves NY 98 to follow a more easterly routing into Orleans County.

NY 98, meanwhile, proceeds toward the county line on Quaker Hill Road, which forms the first portion of the linear north–south alignment that the remainder of NY 98 takes to its northern terminus near Lake Ontario. About 0.5 miles (0.8 km) south of Orleans County, NY 98 passes through a marshy area and crosses over Oak Orchard Creek, here contained within a canal that takes the stream through the nearby swamps. The marshes follow NY 98 into Orleans County and the town of Barre, where the route meets County Route 99 (CR 99) at a junction 3 miles (5 km) north of the county line. Until the early 1950s, CR 99 (West Barre Road) was part of NY 279, which overlapped NY 98 between this point and its current southern terminus in the town of Gaines.[4][5] Past CR 99, Oak Orchard Road returns from its eastern sojourn and carries NY 98 as it heads across firmer areas through Barre Center and crosses into the town of Albion.

NY 98 through downtown Albion

Just north of the Barre–Albion town line, NY 98 intersects NY 31A, a southerly alternate route of NY 31 across Orleans and Monroe counties. NY 98 continues on for 2 miles (3.2 km) to the village of Albion, where it becomes Main Street and intersects NY 31 itself. Past NY 31, NY 98 passes the county courthouse before going through the village's downtown district and crossing over the Erie Canal. On the other side of the canal, the route enters the town of Gaines before exiting the Albion village limits. At Five Corners, a small hamlet north of Albion, NY 98 intersects the current southern terminus of NY 279. From this point north, NY 98 traverses far less developed areas, save for a handful of hamlets. One of these is Childs, where NY 98 meets NY 104 (Ridge Road), just west of the Cobblestone Historic District, a National Historic Landmark.

North of Childs lies the town of Carlton, the final town that NY 98 traverses. The route proceeds through the hamlet of Carlton to an area known as Baldwin Corner, where NY 18 enters from the east and merges with NY 98. NY 18 and NY 98 remain concurrent to a hamlet known as The Bridges, where NY 18 turns west and crosses over Oak Orchard Creek, which enters The Bridges from the southwest. NY 98, meanwhile, crosses over a small tributary known as Marsh Creek and meets Oak Orchard River Road on the northern bank. From here, NY 98 continues northward along the eastern edge of Oak Orchard Creek as Point Breeze Road to an interchange with the Lake Ontario State Parkway, where NY 98 terminates just 0.5 miles (0.8 km) south of Lake Ontario.