Syracuse sits at the crossroads of New York's main highways. I-81 runs north toward Watertown and the Thousand Islands and south toward Binghamton, and the Thruway, I-90, crosses the northern edge of the metro between Rochester and Albany. I-690 runs east to west through the city, connecting the west side, downtown and the eastern suburbs, and I-481 loops around the east side from the southern suburbs past DeWitt to North Syracuse and Cicero.
The state is replacing the elevated stretch of I-81 through downtown with a street-level grid and routing through traffic onto the eastern loop, so traffic patterns near University Hill and downtown keep shifting during the work. Erie Boulevard, which carries NY 5, follows the path of the old canal across the city, and NY 57 runs north toward Liverpool and Clay. Salina Street, James Street and Genesee Street are the main surface arteries, and the city's hills make several of them steep in places.
Syracuse Hancock International Airport sits north of the city near North Syracuse and the Thruway, a short run from most neighborhoods. Centro buses link downtown with the university, the hospitals and the suburbs, and the city is compact enough that a mobile mechanic can usually reach a driveway in Eastwood, a lot on the hill or a garage downtown without much driving. That short reach matters most in winter, when getting a disabled car to a shop through snow is a project of its own.