The AARoads Blog

Day 9,Since our friends decided to leave early, we followed suit and made a day out of it on the way back south.

Decided on Interstate 89 south to check out the Barre Connectors first, both of which appear as freeways on maps sometimes, but really are expressway-like roads with no private driveways. Vermont 62 spurs east from Exit 7 into northern Barre, complete with a connector leading to U.S. 302. The connector splits with Vermont 62 via a partial interchange north of the signalized intersection with Fisher and Airport Roads. The road otherwise ends at a traffic light with the U.S. 302 junction at Vermont 14.

Vermont 14 follows Maple Avenue through Barre to junction U.S. 302 (Main Street) and the Barre Connector (Vermont 62). Sign bridges are posted in all four directions leading into the intersection. Vermont 14 south joins U.S. 302 east briefly before turning southwest to South Barre. Vermont 62 begins and ascends westward toward Edward J. Knapp State Airport and junction Interstate 89.

Further south, Vermont 63 spurs east from the Exit 6 trumpet interchange to Vermont 14 at South Barre. This connector carries less traffic and has only two at-grade intersections. Both connectors see end shields on the southbound Interstate 89 on-ramps.

Vermont 63 travels a less busy route between Vermont 14 (South Barre Road) and Interstate 89 (Exit 6). Unlike Vermont 62 to the north, Vermont 63 sees no traffic signals (just a set of flashers at Miller Road). This shield assembly and Interstate 89 trailblazer lies west of that intersection.

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Began the trip by plotting out a circuitous route to Lake Champlain, Vermont via the New Hampshire seacoast and Hampton Beach. Started out on Interstate 93 southbound to its end and encircling Boston via Interstate 95 north. Traffic on Interstate 95 and the Boston area was relentless, even on a Sunday night at 10:30 am. The number of cars and trucks barrelling down the road on the area freeways makes highway photography a chore…

MassHighway uses large diagrammatical signs regularly along its freeways for interchange elements such as loop ramps and in this instance, a collector/distributor roadway. This particular sign resides along Interstate 95 northbound ahead of the trumpet interchange with U.S. 3 (Exits 32A/B). The c/d roadway serves not only interests to the U.S. 3 freeway north, but also to the nearby folded-diamond interchange with Middlesex Turnpike. Note that U.S. 3 south joins Interstate 95 north to make the jump from its freeway onto its original alignment on Cambridge Street (Exit 33).

Interstate 93 north carried us back to the Loop Connector (Massachusetts 213) east to Interstate 495 north. Interstate 495′s northernmost extent includes just four lanes and the lightest amount of traffic that we saw. Though that is an understatement, it was a welcome concept given the overall Massachusetts’ and Southern New England traffic woes.

I neglected to go to the east end of New Hampshire 101 and Atlantic Coast in 2005, so we decided to make that a stop this year. New Hampshire 101 appears as a freeway with an interchange with U.S. 1 on some maps. This is gravely incorrect, as the highway narrows to two lanes across tidal marshes west of Hampton Beach before partitioning into a one-way one-lane street couplet in the town itself. State maintenance ends near the couplet partition no less.

U.S. 1 (Ocean Boulevard) northbound at the westbound beginning of New Hampshire 101 (Church Street) in Hampton Beach. Church Street carries one lane of N.H. 101 west to the confluence with Highland Avenue (N.H. 101 east). From there New Hampshire 101 crosses marshland to a signalized intersection with Landing Road. After that at-grade intersection, the New Hampshire 101 freeway begins as a super-two expressway.

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Started the day off with a bang, a huge crash of thunder at around 6:30 am at the onset of a thunderstorm in Quincy, MA. A few hours later storm clouds gave way to brilliant skies, setting the tone for the day. We were due in Vermont this night, but opted to stay with our friend in Quincy another night and explore more of the area roads instead. Beginning on Interstate 93 south, we again headed to its terminus with Interstate 95, viewing work associated with the aforementioned project between the two highways. Surprisingly the tight single lane loop ramp that Interstate 95 northbound utilizes between itself and the Massachusetts 128 circumferential highway is not being addressed. The northbound mainline of one of America’s busiest freeways remains relegated to just one lane here. At the same time, abandoned ramps and bridges associated with unconstructed Interstate 95 northeast through Canton remain and presently are the site of construction staging areas for the current project.

Further south, cloverleaf ramps between Interstates 95 and 495 are being slightly altered to improve their curvature. It is amazing to us as to how many full cloverleaf interchanges remain in service between two Interstates, let alone freeways of any kind. It reminds me of the interchanges I experienced in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area..

Interstate 495, for as long as the highway is, carries six lanes throughout most of its length. It is a testament to the far reaching suburbs of Boston and the increasing weekend beach and mountain-bound traffic to have that much capacity on a freeway so far from the city center. Unfortunately the only modern interchange along the route that comes to mind is the Exit 23C directional to Simarano Drive at Marlborough, officially known as Joseph A. Ferrecchia Connector Road.

Finding a state-named Interstate shield in either Massachusetts or New Hampshire is next to impossible, but thanks to our friend Jake, we were able to locate this 18″ wooden trailblazer for Interstate 495 in Upton.

One stop along the northward drive along Interstate 495 took us into the city of Lowell via the Lowell Connector. Once upon a time this freeway spur received the designation Business Spur Interstate 495 (one junction shield still remains). Nowadays it is simply signed as the “Lowell Connector” or “To Interstate 495 & U.S. 3″. A complex series of loop and directional ramps join both the Lowell Connector and the U.S. 3 freeway with Interstate 495 via Exits 35A-B-C. Spurring north from U.S. 3 just south of Interstate 495, the six-lane freeway even receives its own set of sequential exit numbers.

Nearing the northern end of the Lowell Connector at the partition between Exits 5B (Massachusetts 3A north) and 5C (Central Lowell via Gorham Street). “Road Ends” signs are a bit misleading in our opinion. Having seen them as far south as Rhode Island and as far north as Essex Junction, Vermont, they are somewhat standard in the New England states.

Continuing northeast on Interstate 495, the freeway next meets Interstate 93 near Lawrence. Lawrence, Lowell’s sister city if you will, has its own connector in the form of the Loop Connector. Like the Lowell Connector, the Loop Connector also has its own sets of exit numbers but receives the designation Massachusetts 213. Massachusetts 213 carries four overall lanes as it joins Interstate 495 to the east with Interstate 93 to the west.

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