New York State Route 12

New York State Route 12
NY 12 highlighted in red and NY 12A in blue
Route information
Maintained by NYSDOT and the city of Watertown
Length	222.27 mi[1] (357.71 km)
Existed	1924[2]–present
Tourist routes	Great Lakes Seaway Trail
Major junctions
South end	US 11 in Chenango
Major intersections	NY 12A in Chenango NY 23 in Norwich NY 80 in Sherburne NY 12B in Sherburne US 20 in Sangerfield I-790 / NY 5 / NY 8 / NY 5S / NY 49 / NY 840 in Utica NY 28 in Trenton/Alder Creek US 11 / NY 3 in Watertown I-81 in Orleans
North end	NY 37 in Morristown
Location
Country	United States
State	New York
Counties	Broome, Chenango, Madison, Oneida, Lewis, Jefferson, St. Lawrence
Highway system
New York Highways Interstate US State Reference Parkways
← NY 11C → NY 12B

New York State Route 12 (NY 12) is a state highway extending for 222.27 miles (357.71 km) through central and northern New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 11 (US 11) in the town of Chenango (just north of Binghamton) in the Southern Tier. The northern terminus is at NY 37 near the village of Morristown in the North Country. In between, the route serves three cities of varying size: Norwich, Utica, and Watertown. NY 12 intersects several primary routes, including US 20 in Sangerfield, New York State Thruway via Interstate 790 (I-790) in Utica, overlaps NY 28 from Barneveld to the town of Remsen, NY 3 in Watertown, and I-81 in Pamelia and Orleans.

It is a two lane, undivided, full access roadway for the majority of its length, except between the village of New Hartford and Alder Creek, where it is a four-lane highway. Within that span, it is a limited access highway in the city of Utica, referred locally as The Arterial and the North–South Arterial. The distance between Utica and Binghamton is a major trucking route, and features many gas stations, truck stops, and fast food restaurants. Between Boonville and Lowville, it follows the Black River Valley. Then further north, between Watertown and Morristown, it follows the St. Lawrence River valley.

NY 12, as originally assigned in 1924, extended from Chenango in the south to Clayton in the north. It was extended east over the former routing of NY 3 to Alexandria Bay in 1930, then along a new roadway to Morristown in the 1960s. Parts of NY 12 have been rerouted onto new roadways in areas, primarily in Oneida County.