Richmond Avenue
Encyclopedia
Richmond Avenue is an integral north-south thoroughfare on Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...

. Measuring approximately 7.0 miles (11.27 kilometres), the road runs from the community of Graniteville
Graniteville, Staten Island
Graniteville is the name of a neighborhood in Staten Island, one of the five boroughs of New York City, USA.-History:Graniteville was originally named Bennett's Corners and Fayetteville...

 to the south shore community of Eltingville
Eltingville, Staten Island
Eltingville is the name of a neighborhood on Staten Island, one of the five boroughs of New York City, USA. It is on the island's South Shore, immediately to the south of Great Kills and north of Annadale...

.

Street description

Richmond Avenue begins at an intersection with Forest Avenue and Morningstar Road in Graniteville (Actually, the street goes for 2 blocks further east as a one-way street to Willow Road West). Goethals Road North, a road that parallels the Staten Island Expressway, begins to the left at .8 miles. After crossing the Staten Island Expressway, Richmond Avenue intersects with Lamberts Lane, a road with access to 278 north. At 1.5 miles (2.4 km), Victory Boulevard intersects on its way towards Forest Avenue. Rockland Avenue intersects at 2.3 miles (3.7 km) with Draper Place in New Springville
New Springville, Staten Island
New Springville is a neighborhood in Staten Island, one of the five boroughs of New York City, USA.-History:Located near the island's geographical center, the neighborhood was founded in 1680 as Karle's Neck Village...

. At 4.7 miles (7.6 km), the Korean War Veterans Parkway
Korean War Veterans Parkway
The Richmond Parkway is a Parkway that traverses the South Shore of Staten Island, New York, USA from southwest to northeast...

 (formerly the Richmond Parkway
Richmond Parkway
The name Richmond Parkway may refer to:*In California:**Richmond Parkway in Richmond, California, planned as State Route 93**Richmond Parkway Transit Center, a bus hub in Richmond, California*In New York:...

), comes to an end at Richmond Avenue. A tenth of a mile later, Arthur Kill Road intersects. At 6.8 miles (10.9 km), Hylan Boulevard
Hylan Boulevard
Hylan Boulevard is a major northeast-southwest boulevard in the New York City borough of Staten Island. It is approximately long , and runs from the North Shore neighborhood of Rosebank to the South Shore neighborhood of Tottenville....

 crosses before it becomes a divided highway. .2 of a mile later, Richmond Avenue comes to an end at Tennyson Drive.

History

The road is one of the older ones on Staten Island, presumably dating back to the early-to-mid-19th century. Early writings and periodicals refer to Richmond Avenue as the road from Port Richmond
Port Richmond, Staten Island
Port Richmond is a neighborhood situated on the North Shore of Staten Island, one of the five boroughs of New York City, United States. It is along the waterfront of the Kill Van Kull, with the southern terminus of the Bayonne Bridge serving as the boundary between it and Mariners Harbor, the...

 to New Springville
New Springville, Staten Island
New Springville is a neighborhood in Staten Island, one of the five boroughs of New York City, USA.-History:Located near the island's geographical center, the neighborhood was founded in 1680 as Karle's Neck Village...

, just north of the Fresh Kills
Fresh Kills
Fresh Kills is a stream and freshwater estuary in the western portion of the New York City borough of Staten Island...

. Sections of road along what is currently Richmond Avenue were known by various names, such as Bridge Avenue (south to Arthur Kill Road), Old Stone Road and Church Road (in Port Richmond). In 1912, they were all consolidated as "Richmond Avenue". In 1964, the construction of the Willowbrook Expressway divided Richmond Avenue into two sections, the northern segment being later renamed Port Richmond Avenue.

In the 1920s and 1930s, most of Richmond Avenue, particularly south of Victory Boulevard, was predominantly farmland. The road itself was merely one-lane wide. However, indicative of the economic transformation the Richmond Avenue corridor of Staten Island experienced, specifically with the opening of the Staten Island Mall
Staten Island Mall
Staten Island Mall is a shopping mall in the Staten Island borough of New York City, United States. It is the only indoor shopping mall in the borough. It is the largest retail center on the island and is the site of the island's second largest public transit hub after the St...

 in 1972, the roadway was widened. The roadway from Rockland Avenue to Forest Hill Road has been widened to an eight-lane thoroughfare (four lanes each way), while other sections are two and three lanes wide.

Prior to the construction of any expressway on Staten Island, Richmond Avenue, north of Drumgoole Boulevard, was designated New York Route 440, which it held until the West Shore Expressway was completed in 1976.

Richmond Avenue is served in its entirety by the S59/S89 local bus routes. The portion from Forest Avenue to Yukon Avenue is served by the S44/S94 route. The portion south of the Staten Island Mall is also served by the S79 local bus.
The X10/X12/X42 express buses cover the northern portion of Richmond Avenue, the X17 covers the portion from Lamberts Lane to rthur Kill Road, and the X1, X4, and X5 cover the southern portion of Richmond Avenue.
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