If you’ve lived here a while, you know Southern State Parkway crashes can go from fine to chaos in about 30 seconds, especially near the Westbury and Rockville Centre exits. In the summer? Forget it. Between beach season, rush hour, and drivers who think they’re in a video game, it’s a recipe for trouble.
Here’s the blunt truth. Between 2010 and now, this stretch has seen over 42,700 crashes. That’s not a typo. In 2019 alone, Nassau County recorded 3,127 crashes on this road. Even with more recent years dropping closer to 2,300, it’s still one of the worst crash corridors on Long Island.
And it’s not all “bad drivers.” The road just isn’t built for the amount of traffic it gets today. Tight curves. Short on-ramps. Merge lanes that make you sweat. Now throw in thousands of summer visitors barreling out of Jones Beach, and you’ve got a perfect storm.
Jones Beach pulls in about six million people a year. Most of them get there and back using the Meadowbrook Parkway, Wantagh Parkway, or the Robert Moses Causeway. All of those feed directly into the Southern State, right into exits like 22 (Meadowbrook) and 19 (Peninsula Blvd). Those ramps don’t stand a chance against July weekends.
If you’ve ever been stuck behind a landscaping truck on Exit 22 in mid-July while your kids argue about who’s holding the sandy towels, you know exactly what I mean.
“It’s not just impatience. It’s a perfect storm of outdated road design and seasonal surges,” says Neal Goldstein of Goldstein & Bashner, with offices in Westbury and Rockaway. “That stretch of parkway deserves far more respect than it gets.”
If you’re ever involved in Southern State Parkway crashes, remember to get out of the flow of traffic, call 911, take photos, and get checked out, even if you think you’re fine. The danger does not always end when the cars stop moving… sometimes it’s just getting started.
If you have been hurt in a crash on this roadway, an attorney familiar with Southern State Parkway crashes could help you understand your legal options. Contact Goldstein & Bashner today to discuss your situation and take the next step toward protecting your rights.
Goldstein and Bashner
