I am a resident of the UK, but I am going to be living and working in
the United States on a summer camp for about eight weeks this year.
I would like to know the best way for me to get from Greeley, PA, to
New York City for an overnight excursion, preferably leaving after
7pm, and returning the next evening.

Dear noelmarkham-ga;

Thank you for allowing me to answer your interesting question. Here is
the ?quickest? route (in terms of time), courtesy of MSN MAPPOINT:

MSN MAPPOINT
Total Distance: 85.7 Miles 
Estimated Total Time: 1 hour, 44 minutes
http://mappoint.msn.com/(y4k4voifxddiyvuqxpqjagne)/directions.aspx?&EndName=New+York%2c+New+York%2c+United+States&EndLocation=40.71450%2c-74.00700&StartName=Greeley%2c+Pennsylvania%2c+United+States&StartLocation=41.41849%2c-74.99484&DataSetLangID=USA,409&RouteType=Quickest&RouteUnit=Miles

Ironically, the ?shortest? route (in terms of distance) is only about
4 miles shorter, but amazingly takes about 30 minutes longer to
navigate due to congestion, reduced speed and wait times:

MSN MAPPOINT
Total Distance: 83.1 Miles 
Estimated Total Time: 2 hours, 13 minutes
http://mappoint.msn.com/(y4k4voifxddiyvuqxpqjagne)/directions.aspx?&EndName=New+York%2c+New+York%2c+United+States&EndLocation=40.71450%2c-74.00700&StartName=Greeley%2c+Pennsylvania%2c+United+States&StartLocation=41.41849%2c-74.99484&DataSetLangID=USA,409&RouteType=Shortest&RouteUnit=Miles

In this second option, there are some alternative parallel highways
between Jersey City and West Caldwell that allow you to bypass US280.
The problem here is that everyone else knows about this route too, so
you might as well opt for US280 and take advantage of the higher speed
limit, better highway and number of eastbound lanes. Generally
speaking, bypassing US280 does nothing toward making your journey a
better one or a faster one.

If I were you I?d definitely choose the first route over the second
one in order to have a faster, safer and more economical commute.
There are some construction areas in this general region but nothing
out of the ordinary.

NEW JERSEY DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/commuter/trafficinfo/



I hope you find that my research exceeds your expectations. If you
have any questions about my research please post a clarification
request prior to rating the answer. Otherwise I welcome your rating
and your final comments and I look forward to working with you again
in the near future. Thank you for bringing your question to us.

Best regards;
Tutuzdad-ga ? Google Answers Researcher



INFORMATION SOURCES

Defined above


SEARCH STRATEGY


SEARCH ENGINE USED:

Google ://www.google.com

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Clarification of Answer by tutuzdad-ga on 01 Feb 2005 10:56 PST

You will notice that the MSN MAPPOINT links did not translate well. To
view them, simply copy them to your browser's address field and hit
ENTER.

tutuzdad-ga

Excellent answer, many thanks. I have posted a similar question, if
you could possibly look into that as well