The Garden State Parkway ( or Garden State Pkwy ) is a toll highway ( which means that people must pay to drive on it ) that goes through New Jersey from the south end of the state at Cape May to the north end of the state at Montvale , New Jersey . The Garden State Parkway ( GSP ) is a 172.4-mile ( 277-km ) limited-access toll parkway that stretches the length of New Jersey from the New York line at Montvale , New Jersey , to Cape May at New Jersey 's southernmost tip . Its name refers to New Jersey 's nickname , the `` Garden State . ''