Work began on the Horace Harding Expressway in 1955, but soon encountered delays because of weather conditions, construction worker strikes, and difficulties in building across existing roads and swampy land. The highway had been extended east to Parsons Boulevard in Pomonok, Queens, by 1959, where the highway abruptly terminated and barriers funneled traffic onto the service road. Soon after, the highway was extended to Peck Avenue in Fresh Meadows. Further east in Queens, a section of the highway in the vicinity of Alley Pond Park, between Cloverdale Boulevard in Bayside and Little Neck Parkway, officially opened on September 25, 1957. The highway segment reduced the need for cars to use West Alley Road, a winding road that crossed the park.