New York State Route 2

NY 2 begins at I-87 (the Adirondack Northway) exit 6 in the hamlet of Latham, where NY 7 leaves Troy–Schenectady Road to join I-87. The route proceeds east on Troy–Schenectady Road, a four-lane boulevard in the town of Colonie. Passing south of the Latham Farms Shopping Center, and soon north of the Latham Circle Mall, the route enters Latham Circle, where it connects to US 9 (Loudon Road). Instead of directly intersecting US 9, NY 2 meets a series of ramps leading to and from the road while US 9 itself crosses under the circle, allowing for a continuous flow of traffic on US 9. East of US 9, NY 2 runs southeast through Colonie, serving residential neighborhoods and a short commercialized stretch on its way into the riverside city of Watervliet, where it becomes 19th Street.[4] Two blocks into the city, maintenance of the route shifts from the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) to the city highway department.[5]

NY 2 westbound approaching the city of Watervliet

The highway initially serves three blocks of homes before entering a linear commercial district at a junction with 12th Avenue. From here, the road crosses a Canadian Pacific Railway line as it approaches downtown Watervliet,[4] where state maintenance resumes one block west of an intersection with NY 32 (Second Avenue).[5] Past NY 32, NY 2 crosses over I-787 and the Hudson River on the Congress Street Bridge, which links Watervliet to the city of Troy on the opposite bank. Just east of the bridge, the route enters a partial interchange with Front Street and splits into a one-way pair along Congress Street (westbound) and Ferry Street (eastbound), both two lanes wide. The couplet takes the route through the Central Troy Historic District, where NY 2 eastbound heads into a two-block tunnel that carries the highway underneath the campus of Russell Sage College.[4]

NY 2 at NY 66 as seen from NY 66 in Troy

Ferry Street returns to surface level at 3rd Street, where NY 2 meets the southbound half of US 4, which is also routed along a one-way pair through the city. A junction with US 4 northbound follows two blocks to the east at 4th Street.[4] While most of NY 2 westbound is city-maintained in Troy, NY 2 eastbound is a state road up through its intersection with 5th Avenue.[5] After 5th Avenue, the highway leaves downtown Troy and begins to climb the hills overlooking the city. Near the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Ferry and Congress streets merge to form a single two-lane road carrying the Congress Street name. The route runs southeastward from the merge, serving another commercial strip in the Eastside section of the city and connecting to the northern terminus of NY 66 (Pawling Avenue).[4]

Past NY 66, NY 2 changes names to Brunswick Road and turns northeastward through a residential section of Troy. It loosely parallels the northern edge of Poesten Kill to the Troy city line, where the highway reaches the southern terminus of County Route 141 (CR 141 or South Lake Avenue).[4] State maintenance of NY 2 resumes as the road heads into the town of Brunswick,[5] where the homes along the highway become less frequent and more scattered. The route runs past occasional stretches of dense woods to reach the hamlet of Eagle Mills, where it intersects with the eastern terminus of CR 140 (Pinewoods Avenue) and the south end of CR 133 (Moonlawn Road). Outside of Eagle Mills, development along NY 2 continues to dwindle as it takes a more northerly track through the town. It bends back to the east near Clums Corners, the site of intersections with the southern terminus of NY 278 (Brick Church Road) and the northern terminus of NY 351 (Farm to Market Road).[4]

View west along NY 2 at NY 22 in Petersburgh

East of Clums Corners, NY 2 loses the Brunswick Road name as it heads northeast through increasingly rural areas along the Quacken Kill. The route crosses the western terminus of CR 79 (Blue Factory Road) along this stretch before winding back to the southeast at the Grafton town line. It soon takes a more easterly track through Grafton, intersecting both ends of CR 84 (Old Road) on its way into the residential hamlet of Grafton. The route connects to Grafton Lakes State Park Way, the main road leading into Grafton Lakes State Park, and the northern terminus of CR 85 (South Road) before leaving the community. From the hamlet of Grafton, NY 2 winds southeast through rural sections of the town of Grafton, slowly heading downhill toward the Grafton–Petersburgh town line. In Petersburgh, the highway meets the southern terminus of CR 94 (Dill Brook Road) on its way into the hamlet of Petersburgh.[4]

In the center of the community, NY 2 connects to NY 22 by way of Moses Road (eastbound) and Main Street (westbound),[4] both designated as NY 914A, an unsigned reference route.[1] NY 2 itself crosses over NY 22, taking on the Main Street name as it runs through the center of Petersburgh. Past the hamlet, the route changes names to Taconic Trail as it meanders southeastward through rural, mostly wooded sections of Petersburgh. NY 2 intersects both ends of CR 91 (East Hollow Road) before traversing dense woods in the Berkshire Mountains. The road takes a generally south-southeastward track to the Massachusetts state line, where it becomes Massachusetts Route 2 upon entering the town of Williamstown, Massachusetts.[4]