Restaurant sales at New York State Thruway rest stops surged to $136 million last year, a nearly 50% bump from the year before as a dozen locations reopened following multi-million-dollar makeovers.
Leading the way was the New Baltimore service area with $18.4 million in sales, followed by Plattekill with $16.5 million.
Each location features a revamped restaurant mix that includes Chick-fil-A, Starbucks and Panera Bread, as well as a 24-hour Applegreen convenience store.
Last year was New Baltimore’s first full year following a June 2023 reopening. It’s located between exits 21B and 21A, near the entrance to the Mass Pike and points north. Plattekill, between exits 17 and 18, reopened a month before.
They’re among 26 of the Thruway’s 27 service areas rebuilt or renovated over the past four years as part of a $450 million makeover led by Empire State Thruway Partners.
Traffic, and revenue, up on the NYS Thruway
Their success is the latest bit of good news for the Thruway’s bottom line.
Last year, revenue surpassed $1 billion for the first time in the Thruway’s 71-year history due largely to toll hikes across the 570-mile superhighway that kicked in at the start of 2024. It was the first year since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic that passenger traffic exceeded 2019 totals.
“The busy summer travel season is around the corner and with 26 of 27 service areas reopened, motorists are enjoying the full benefits of modern and updated facilities featuring popular food and beverage options as well as many other travel amenities including the build out of an end-to-end Electric Vehicle charging network,” Thruway spokeswoman Jennifer Givner said.
More restaurant revenue means more income for the Thruway.
Empire’s rent payments are calculated as a percentage of gross sales with a guaranteed annual minimum for each location, according to the contract.
“The successful redevelopment of many of our travel plazas has improved the experience for our customers, and we think it is fair to say we had a good year because people appreciate the quality of our travel plazas, our expanded shopping and dining options, and the warm hospitality of Applegreen locations,” said Paula Chirhart, a spokeswoman for the Thruway Partners consortium.
The Thruway collected $10.2 million from service areas last year, representing around 1% of the Thruway’s annual operating revenue, which largely comes from tolls.
The 2021 deal with Empire guarantees the Thruway at least $51 million in rent and upgrades valued at $103 million over 33 years. And the private consortium agreed to spend $300 million to rebuild 23 service areas and renovate four others.
Thruway service areas see a summer bump
In 2023, the total from restaurant sales was $92 million.
The busiest months in 2024 were July and August, with restaurant sales of nearly $33 million.
This was the first renovation of 1950’s-era rest stops since the 1990s. In addition to changing the restaurant mix, playgrounds, dog walking areas, outdoor seating and EV charging stations have been added at most locations.
The only one of the 27 rest stops yet to reopen is Modena. Renovations are slated to wrap up later this year.
Thomas C. Zambito covers energy, transportation and economic growth for the USA Today Network’s New York State team. He’s won dozens of state and national writing awards from the Associated Press, Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Deadline Club and others during a decades-long career that’s included stops at the New York Daily News, The Star-Ledger of Newark and The Record of Hackensack. He can be reached at tzambito@lohud.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Restaurant sales at NYS Thruway service areas surge by $44M after multi-year makeover
Reporting by Thomas C. Zambito, New York State Team / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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