Connecticut to New York is an interstate move: check the USDOT and MC numbers
West Haven sits on Long Island Sound in New Haven County, and the city counted 55,584 residents in the 2020 census. From here, New York City is a ride on the Metro-North New Haven Line or a drive down I-95, yet any household move that ends in another state is interstate, however close the two addresses are.
That matters because interstate household moves fall under federal rules. A company moving your belongings across a state line should have a USDOT number, and household goods carriers also carry an MC number. Both are public, and good companies print them in their website header or on their quote. If a quote arrives without them, ask for them before you ask for anything else.
The federal rules for estimates are worth reading once. Under 49 CFR 375.401, a mover is expected to survey the household goods and give you a written estimate, and that estimate must say whether it is binding or non-binding. A binding estimate guarantees the total based on what was surveyed; a non-binding one is the mover's best guess and can move. Know which one you are holding. A video walkthrough of your rooms is a fair way to get a survey done when nobody can visit in person.
Building rules in the city: ask management before you book
Most New York apartment buildings control moves tightly. Many want a certificate of insurance naming the building, many limit moves to weekday daylight hours, and many require you to reserve the freight elevator or a loading spot in advance. Co-op boards can be stricter again.
Your landlord or managing agent can tell you the rules in a single call, so make that call before you pick a date. Ask for the move-in hours, the deposit if there is one, the elevator booking process and whether the street in front can be coned off. Then pass all of it to your mover in writing.
At the Connecticut end, the same questions apply. A shoreline cottage with a narrow driveway and a condo with a shared lot need different plans, and a crew that hears about them early will bring the right truck instead of improvising.
Timing around I-95
I-95 carries a huge share of the traffic between New Haven County, Fairfield County and the city, and it rarely feels empty. Summer weekends, holiday Fridays and the last few days of the month are the hardest to plan around, because everyone with a lease ending is moving at once.
If your dates are flexible, a mid-month weekday gives you the best odds of a quiet road and an available elevator. Leave the loading side early enough that the truck reaches the city while the building still has working hours left, because a late arrival can mean the unloading slips to the next morning.
One more point from the federal rules: interstate carriers often work in delivery windows rather than exact times, particularly on longer runs. Ask what the window is for your route and what happens if the truck is early or late, so you are not waiting at the new address with no idea when to expect it.
Who handles the New York end
A West Haven crew like ours is at home on the Connecticut side, and for a plain local move that is all you need. When the destination is in New York City, it can make sense to talk to a company that works in the five boroughs every day and already knows how the buildings behave.
For the New York end, Gotham Moving Systems in Brooklyn holds federal household-goods authority for moves into the city.
Whoever you choose, get the USDOT and MC numbers, a written estimate that says binding or non-binding, and the building's rules in hand a week before the move. With those in place, the state line is just one more thing on the checklist.