Past NY 281, NY 222 crosses a commercial section of Cortlandville, passing several strip malls prior to entering the city of Cortland. Now named Groton Avenue, the route slowly curves eastward while traversing a residential part of the city. It passes north of the State University of New York at Cortland, and the campus marks the western edge of downtown Cortland. NY 222 becomes a commercialized street again, serving a pair of city blocks before intersecting with US 11 and NY 41 (Main Street). US 11 and NY 41 join NY 222, and the concurrency between the three routes heads east through downtown as Clinton Avenue. The overlap lasts for just one block, however, as NY 222 ends upon intersecting NY 13 at the next junction. NY 13 northbound continues east along Clinton Avenue while NY 13 southbound heads south along Church Street on an overlap with US 11 and NY 41.