The route heads southeastward as the four-lane Veterans Memorial Highway, passing through a large commercial district built up around NY 454's interchange with the Sunken Meadow State Parkway (exit SM2).

From there, NY 454 continues eastward through a residential district for several miles and passes to the south of Whitman Hollow Park.

The arterial road continues southeastward through local residential areas with four lanes before meeting NY 347 and the Northern State Parkway at an interchange in Hauppauge.

After bending around Forestwood Park, Routes 454 and 347 follow the town line and pass the Stoubrough Golf Course, where NY 347 forks to the northeast.

[3] NY 454 continues as a four-lane arterial road through a large commercial district, intersecting with CR 93 (Lakeland Avenue).

There, the highway passes Long Island MacArthur Airport and bends to the east through another large commercial district remaining unchanged for several miles.

The route turns to the southeast at Coates Avenue as a four-lane arterial road for the last two miles (3.2 km) of NY 454.

People had been arguing since 1947 to get a new county-funded war veteran memorial installed in Suffolk, including a number of other suggested projects such as trees at a park in Yaphank to a new general-use hospital.

The design for the freeway between Commack and Holbrook included a 145-foot-wide (44 m) right-of-way, and the road was constructed under the supervision of the New York State Department of Public Works.

[6] To aid this, ownership and maintenance of CR 78 was transferred to the New York State Department of Transportation on March 29, 1972, receiving the designation of NY 454.