The fate of New York Avenue NE was sealed with the cancellation of the Northeast Freeway in 1977, which was intended to provide a more direct route for traffic between downtown Washington and Baltimore along the Interstate 95 corridor. The loss of the Northeast Freeway left New York Avenue NE, U.S. Route 50, and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway as the best route to get in and out of downtown Washington from the northeast. The main advantage of New York Avenue NE is that drivers need only put up with about two-and-a-half miles (4 km) of traffic lights between downtown Washington and the last traffic light at Bladensburg Road, while the distance between downtown Washington and the closest controlled-access freeway is more than twice as far for the two next best alternative routes, MD 650 and MD 500/MD 410.