Indy to Boston - what is the best route?

[DHort]

Hopefully next week I will be able to drive Steve Jelf's roadster to KS and drop it off at the Winter Clinic.
People down there have offered to take the car from the clinic to Steve's house.

After that I might have to drive to Indy and then Boston.
It looks like there are 3 routes to Boston. Through upstate NY, north of Pittsburgh and then east, or south of
Pittsburgh and then east. What route will be best with the trailer, and how do you tell EZpass that you
have a trailer?

Thank you.

[Mike Silbert]

Ez-Pass knows you have a trailer from the scanning software. They will charge more for the trailer. Drive like normal and all is good.

There has been a lot of lake effects snow lately so check to see that the path is clear where you travel. Even without that there have been several snow events and tons of wind in the last few weeks in the mid / north east area. Further south routes might avoid that but some of the Appalachian Mountain crossings are not very trailer friendly (hilly, curvy, tight and busy).
There is a lot to consider this time of year.
Be careful and run safe.

[Ron Patterson]

Dave
I have always found the traffic is siginificant less on the New York Southern Tier Expressway (Interstate 86 in NY) is the best between Boston and Erie.
Ron Patterson

[Art M]

I favor the northern route across Pennsylvania, I80. This is shorter than the route across southern New York. The interstate across Northern NY has a pricy toll, but might be the shortest route by a few miles.
As previously suggested, check the weather before making the decision. Good luc

[Steve Jelf]

Going to Hershey, I favor I-80. But winter? Dunno. I'd certainly avoid NYC and its bridge tolls.

[Bills Auto Works]

As someone who has run this route probably 300 times or more in my 4 plus decades of transporting classic cars....Here is the route I have found to be the best.

I-70 east out of Indy, I-270 around Columbus to I-71 North to I-76 east to I-80 east to I-81 North to I-84 east & that dead ends into I-90 east (Mass Pike) right into Boston.

Your only real traffic (depending on the time of day) would b e a little on I-270 around Columbus & on I-84 in Connecticut around Hartford. I prefer I-84 anytime I am heading in to New England, except if I am going somewhere like the Albany area. I will then take I-86 across New York, it is a little longer than I-90, but no tolls.

Yes, your EZ-Pass will put you in the right class automatically.

Have a safe trip!
God Bless
Bill
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/thr ... ed.614419/

[Shrshot]

As someone who has run this route probably 300 times or more in my 4 plus decades of transporting classic cars....Here is the route I have found to be the best.

I-70 east out of Indy, I-270 around Columbus to I-71 North to I-76 east to I-80 east to I-81 North to I-84 east & that dead ends into I-90 east (Mass Pike) right into Boston.

Your only real traffic (depending on the time of day) would b e a little on I-270 around Columbus & on I-84 in Connecticut around Hartford. I prefer I-84 anytime I am heading in to New England, except if I am going somewhere like the Albany area. I will then take I-86 across New York, it is a little longer than I-90, but no tolls.

Yes, your EZ-Pass will put you in the right class automatically.

Have a safe trip!
God Bless
Bill
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/thr ... ed.614419/

Bill, as a retired truck driver (31 years) I agree completely with your route!

[John Codman]

Hopefully next week I will be able to drive Steve Jelf's roadster to KS and drop it off at the Winter Clinic.
People down there have offered to take the car from the clinic to Steve's house.

After that I might have to drive to Indy and then Boston.
It looks like there are 3 routes to Boston. Through upstate NY, north of Pittsburgh and then east, or south of
Pittsburgh and then east. What route will be best with the trailer, and how do you tell EZpass that you
have a trailer?

Thank you.

EZ pass uses cameras. Don't worry about it. Weather permitting I would use I-90. The Pennsylvania Turnpike is more hilly and curvy then the New York Thruway. The Mass Pike gives you a straight shot into Boston without having to deal with I-95 through the New York City area. One thing - keep abreast of the weather; if the great lakes are not frozen, the wind over them from the Northwest - the fair weather direction, can dump a lot of lake-effect snow on any of the routes you mentioned.

[TRDxB2]

In the past I have traveled from the Midwest to the East Coast on many different routes. Grew up in the NY/Connecticut area.
USE THIS to Calculate tolls for any route https://tollguru.com/toll-calculator

So the section circled in red is to be avoided at all cost (traffic is unbearable & tolls make it worse).
Google route suggestions

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Using Toll Guru click on images to see details
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This is the cheapest and nearly the fastest route

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This is nearly the fastest but most expensive and subject to traffic

[John Codman]

I totally agree with the above red circle. New York City charges double tolls Northbound and none Southbound. If you hit NYC before about 6 AM and after about 9 PM, the traffic is usually manageable. Between those hours you don't want to be there.