I-290 begins at a semi-directional T interchange with I-190 within view of the Niagara River in an industrial sector of the Buffalo suburb of Tonawanda. The freeway heads east from I-190 into more residential areas of Tonawanda, where it meets New York State Route 384 at a three-quarter cloverleaf interchange. The two missing portions of the cloverleaf, both ramps leading to NY 384 from I-290 eastbound, are replaced by an exit to Elmwood Avenue located slightly west of the NY 384 exit. To the east of NY 384, I-290 interchanges with the Twin Cities Memorial Highway. The Youngmann continues east through Tonawanda to the Amherst town line, where it meets U.S. Route 62 at a second three-quarter cloverleaf interchange. Unlike the interchange with NY 384, all connections are possible between I-290 and US 62 due to a modified ramp linking I-290 westbound to US 62. Past US 62 in Amherst, I-290 turns to the southeast ahead of a semi-directional T interchange with I-990, a spur to Lockport. Farther east, I-290 meets NY 263 at a cloverleaf interchange and NY 324 and NY 240 at a modified diamond interchange south of the University at Buffalo's North Campus in Amherst. Near Williamsville, I-290 turns southward and intersects NY 5 at a modified cloverleaf interchange. I-290 terminates at a semi-directional T interchange with the New York State Thruway a half-mile to the south on the Amherst-Cheektowaga town line. This interchange is colloquially referenced as "The Blue Water Tower" due to its proximity to a large bluewater tower on the Amherst-Cheektowaga town line.
History
What is now I-290 was originally intended to be designated I-190. The route was renumbered I-290 in 1958 to better reflect the future highway's routing as a connector between two Interstate Highways rather than a spur. Construction on the expressway began when work commenced on the section between NY 263 and the New York State Thruway. This section was finished by the following year, by which time work had begun on the remainder of the freeway. The section between NY 263 and US 62 was opened to traffic while the rest was finished in the mid-1960s. The interchange with what is now I-990 was built in 1983. The expressway was originally named the Power Line Expressway for the high tension power lines that parallel the expressway. It was renamed in the early 1960s to serve as a memorial to Elmer G. H. Youngmann, a project engineer who died while the road was being built. The official name of the freeway became the Youngmann Memorial Highway; however, the name Youngmann Expressway has also been frequently used over the years.
