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Long Island Motor Parkway was a private toll road built by William Vanderbilt so that the Vanderbilt Cup races could be moved off of public roads. It was only used for racing for a short period of time, and was later turned over to various public entities. Some parts of it are still in use today although not always under that name, and other parts can be identified.
A revival of the Vanderbilt Cup occurred nearby at Roosevelt Raceway in 1936, but this lasted for only 2 years.
New: 2019-12-27 Last Updated: 2020-01-04
The LIMP was not yet complete in 1908; a completed section in the area of Westbury and Bethpage was used, with a return leg on the Jericho Turnpike. A gravel temporary road was built from the south end of Ellison Road to the join the west end of the section of the LIMP being used, crossing the Hempstead Plains Aerodrome (later Roosevelt Field.) On the east end of the LIMP section, the 1908 terminus of the LIMP was on Round Swamp Road and the racers simply turned left (north) there.
The variant used in 1909 and 1910 was shorter, using Old Country Road for the return leg. The same temporary gravel road was used on the west end, and a gravel ramp was built on the east end from the LIMP to Hicksville Road, circumventing the toll lodge and the rather tight ramp.
Due to an accident in the 1910 race, racing using the LIMP ended. It continued to be used as a toll road until 1938. By then, it was obsolete and New York State declined to incorporate it into the new parkway system. The LIMP right of way was parceled out to various government entities. The eastern end is still used as County Route 67, with some rerouting along the LIE. A section in Queens is used as a biking and hiking trail. Much of the central section is used for LICO transmission line right of way.
The original intent was to extend the parkway out to Riverhead, but this never happened.
This track map is a work in progress. It shows the 1908 and 1909/10 circuits of the Vanderbilt Cup races. The OpenHistoricalMap base layer shows the full route of the Long Island Motor Parkway.
As an added bonus, the nearby circuits of Mineola Fairgrounds and Roosevelt Raceways are shown, as well as the earlier Vanderbilt Cup circuits of 1904-1906. Zooming out will be necessary to see everything.
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