Crossroads of New England?

[The Nature Boy]

Copied from the "Crossroads of America" thread, I wanted to create a separate thread about this:

Crossroads of New England...Boston, then Hartford.

Lebanon, New Hampshire claims this title.



I-89/91 and US 4/5 intersect right across the river in White River Junction, Vermont so Lebanon misses the mark on claiming to be a crossroads of anything by a few miles.

Also, the star on that logo is nowhere near Lebanon.

I-89 and I-91 severe somewhat of the same purpose in New England. I would only see the US 3/4 intersection as somewhat important

I disagree

I-89 serves as a way to connect Boston to Burlington and ultimately Montreal (and of course Burlington to Montreal). I-89 is a very important roadway.

I-91 is an important north to south highway for Western New England but probably not that important in the grand scheme of things (north of Springfield at least).

Their intersection is probably not a good crossroads of New England though and I'd argue that the I-90/91 junction is the Crossroads of New England. I-91 crosses the Mass Pike just north of the last urban center on I-91 (Springfield). I-90 takes you towards Boston, Providence and the more urban Eastern New England whereas I-91 continues north into the woods and mountains of Northern New England.

[hotdogPi]

I would say Worcester. It's on the way of I-95 → I-91 → I-84 → I-90 → I-290 → I-495 → I-95 (the way to get to Maine, or New Hampshire if replacing the latter "I-95" with the Everett Turnpike and I-93, from much of the United States). Worcester also has more directions (I-90 and I-91 have two directions each, while Worcester has I-90 west, I-90 east, I-290 east, I-190 north, I-395 south, and MA 146 southeast).

[JJBers]

I would say Worcester. It's on the way of I-95 → I-91 → I-84 → I-90 → I-290 → I-495 → I-95 (the way to get to Maine, or New Hampshire if replacing the latter "I-95" with the Everett Turnpike and I-93, from much of the United States). Worcester also has more directions (I-90 and I-91 have two directions each, while Worcester has I-90 west, I-90 east, I-290 east, I-190 north, I-395 south, and MA 146 southeast).

I think that perfectly matches the crossroad definition.

[KEVIN_224]

That star is closer to Keene than Lebanon, NH! They have...NH Routes 9 and 12? 

[empirestate]

I would say Worcester. It's on the way of I-95 → I-91 → I-84 → I-90 → I-290 → I-495 → I-95 (the way to get to Maine, or New Hampshire if replacing the latter "I-95" with the Everett Turnpike and I-93, from much of the United States). Worcester also has more directions (I-90 and I-91 have two directions each, while Worcester has I-90 west, I-90 east, I-290 east, I-190 north, I-395 south, and MA 146 southeast).

I think that perfectly matches the crossroad definition.

Too many directions to be a simple crossroads. But it's certainly an appropriately typical New England intersection!

For a proper crossroads, I'm gonna go with Springfield (I-90/I-91). It's the crossing of the main N/S and the and E/W routes that serve pretty much all sections of New England. (Worcester is a little better connected, but it's more of a hub than a simple crossroads.)

[froggie]

Worcester also requires "going off the beaten path" in order to access.  For that reason, I would not call it a crossroads.

[shadyjay]

Back in the heyday of railroading, White River Jct was the crossroads of Northern New England.  It was part of a thru route from both New York City and Boston to Montreal, with two major n/s lines intersecting there.  Alas, the route south(east) towards Concord is no more but everything else is still in place.  At present, it's still a crossroads (not so much railroading anymore, but transportation in general).  Maybe it's because two north-south interstates intersect there (one traveling due n/s, the other more se/nw). 

And to be fair, the logo does say "LEBANON AREA", which encompasses West Lebanon, right next to White River Jct.  I believe the Vermont version is the "Upper Valley Chamber of Commerce", a more appropriate title.

[PHLBOS]

I would say Worcester. It's on the way of I-95 → I-91 → I-84 → I-90 → I-290 → I-495 → I-95 (the way to get to Maine, or New Hampshire if replacing the latter "I-95" with the Everett Turnpike and I-93, from much of the United States). Worcester also has more directions (I-90 and I-91 have two directions each, while Worcester has I-90 west, I-90 east, I-290 east, I-190 north, I-395 south, and MA 146 southeast).

Worcester also requires "going off the beaten path" in order to access.  For that reason, I would not call it a crossroads.

Sturbridge , MA; where I-84 meets I-90, might be a more suitable candidate.

[The Nature Boy]

Back in the heyday of railroading, White River Jct was the crossroads of Northern New England.  It was part of a thru route from both New York City and Boston to Montreal, with two major n/s lines intersecting there.  Alas, the route south(east) towards Concord is no more but everything else is still in place.  At present, it's still a crossroads (not so much railroading anymore, but transportation in general).  Maybe it's because two north-south interstates intersect there (one traveling due n/s, the other more se/nw). 

And to be fair, the logo does say "LEBANON AREA", which encompasses West Lebanon, right next to White River Jct.  I believe the Vermont version is the "Upper Valley Chamber of Commerce", a more appropriate title.

Given the interconnectedness of the Upper Valley community more broadly, it is interesting to me that there isn't a bi-state Chamber of Commerce. A couple of the school districts in the area even cross between NH and VT with students who live in one state attending school in another. It really is a unique area that kind of ignores the state line at times.

I could buy the Upper Valley as a crossroads, though I still defer to points south as THE crossroads.

[mariethefoxy]

Hartford CT is the crossroads. People come up 91 and 15 from the NYC area and then either turn onto 84 to head towards boston or nashua or maine, or they stay on 91 north to get to springfield or vermont. Coming back down you stay on 84 to get towards PA and upstate NY or you take 91 and 15 to head down towards NY and NJ

[kurumi]

If we limit the criteria to state highways only, I nominate Keene, NH: state routes 9, 10, 12, 32, and 101 reach out to New York State; New Haven; New London, CT; Groton, CT; Portsmouth; New Brunswick, Canada; northern NH; and northern VT.

Total mileage of these routes: 1192.909 (which does not even include NH 12A)

[empirestate]

Hartford CT is the crossroads. People come up 91 and 15 from the NYC area and then either turn onto 84 to head towards boston or nashua or maine, or they stay on 91 north to get to springfield or vermont. Coming back down you stay on 84 to get towards PA and upstate NY or you take 91 and 15 to head down towards NY and NJ

That sounds more like a fork than a crossroads.

[JJBers]

Hartford CT is the crossroads. People come up 91 and 15 from the NYC area and then either turn onto 84 to head towards boston or nashua or maine, or they stay on 91 north to get to springfield or vermont. Coming back down you stay on 84 to get towards PA and upstate NY or you take 91 and 15 to head down towards NY and NJ

That sounds more like a fork than a crossroads.

I would consider it as a secondary crossroad....
Really at this point, you could call any intersection a crossroad. Willimantic has US 6, which connects to NY and RI/MA, CT 32, which goes to the shoreline, and northern New England.

[Alps]

US 7 is the crossroad of New England. If you don't cross that road, you're not in New England.

[JJBers]

US 7 is the crossroad of New England. If you don't cross that road, you're not in New England.

So I wasn't in New England for 13 years...ok

[hotdogPi]

US 7 is the crossroad of New England. If you don't cross that road, you're not in New England.

Or just take Amtrak from New York City to Boston and you'll never enter New England.

[Alps]

US 7 is the crossroad of New England. If you don't cross that road, you're not in New England.

Or just take Amtrak from New York City to Boston and you'll never enter New England.

That's no way to travel.

[MikeTheActuary]

Hartford CT is the crossroads. People come up 91 and 15 from the NYC area and then either turn onto 84 to head towards boston or nashua or maine, or they stay on 91 north to get to springfield or vermont. Coming back down you stay on 84 to get towards PA and upstate NY or you take 91 and 15 to head down towards NY and NJ

That sounds more like a fork than a crossroads.

Nah; Hartford is more like the the pothole of New England than the crossroads. 

My vote would be Auburn, MA or "Greater Worcester", due to the lack of better options.

Hartford and Springfield (or West Springfield, if we're getting picky) are significant crossroads, but they're too far west to really fit the definition of "crossroads of New England".  White River Junction probably has a pretty good claim on "crossroads of Northern New England". 

Sturbridge is definitely a significant intersection, but it's not really a place from which one would would uniquely proceed towards either northern New England or Rhode Island and the Cape.  It's simply notable for being a major fork on the road network connecting Boston with the rest of the world, and for being roughly half-way between Boston and either Hartford or Springfield.

I'd think that someplace near the western MA/NH border would have the advantage of being more plausibly centrally located, but there's no major east-west route near there.  (Yes, there's MA 2, but I wouldn't consider it "major" given the prominence of the MassPike just a bit to the south.)

So....my vote is Auburn/Greater Worcester due to the lack of more appropriate places to contend for the title.  It's a relevant intersection for folks traveling to/from Hartford, Springfield, Boston, and Providence, and it has some relevance for some traffic to/from some parts of northern New England.

[MikeTheActuary]

Additional potential claimant: Lawrence, MA, as it's arguably relevant to traffic headed to/from Maine, and therefore has the advantage of being a point from which you can proceed in multiple directions, with those "multiple directions" being generally relevant to both northern and southern New England, but it's kind of biased a bit northward when you consider the distribution of population throughout New England.


EDIT: ...and thinking about it more, Westborough could claim the title, hosting the Masspike/495 interchange, a major point of divergence for traffic coming from eastbound on the Masspike to decide whether they want to go to Boston, Maine, southeastern Mass.   But Westborough could also be considered part of "Greater Worcester", bolstering that claim.

EDIT²:  It's a shame that counties are mostly irrelevant in Massachusetts.  Worcester County would arguably be the best fit, encompassing Worcester, Auburn, Westborough, Sturbridge, and Leominster.

[bob7374]

 Despite what anyone may define it and argue for other cities, everyone knows that Boston is the true Crossroads of New England. 

[PHLBOS]

Despite what anyone may define it and argue for other cities, everyone knows that Boston is the true Crossroads of New England. 

Hub of New England, yes.  Crossroads, no so much; mainly due to Boston being located along the coast.

[empirestate]

I'd think that someplace near the western MA/NH border would have the advantage of being more plausibly centrally located, but there's no major east-west route near there.  (Yes, there's MA 2, but I wouldn't consider it "major" given the prominence of the MassPike just a bit to the south.)

I had this thought, too. Greenfield strikes me as a significant convergence point; it's pretty noticeable traveling through on I-91, at least. But while Greenfield might be a crossroads for MA, NH and VT, it's less of one for CT, and not at all for RI. And then you have Maine...

So the problem is always that you can find a crossroads for southern New England (Hartford?) or northern New England (White River Jct.?), but choosing one that suits the whole region is trickier. And then you have Maine...

...and thinking about it more, Westborough could claim the title, hosting the Masspike/495 interchange, a major point of divergence for traffic coming from eastbound on the Masspike to decide whether they want to go to Boston, Maine, southeastern Mass.   But Westborough could also be considered part of "Greater Worcester", bolstering that claim.

I'm liking Westborough. It definitely seems like a crossroads, as opposed to a fork or hub. And it ties together enough possible destinations from southern New England (RI, the Cape) and northern New England (NH, ME) while also pertaining to Boston, CT and western MA. The only black sheep in that family, then, is VT.

Despite what anyone may define it and argue for other cities, everyone knows that Boston is the true Crossroads of New England. 

Certainly not...it's the Hub of the Universe. :-)

[MikeTheActuary]

Despite what anyone may define it and argue for other cities, everyone knows that Boston is the true Crossroads of New England. 

I think it would be more accurate to say that Bostonians know that Boston is the true hub of New England. 

[vdeane]

If we were to allow coastal areas for crossroads, I-91/I-95 in New Haven would fit perfectly, and is the only place where two roads cross where the two combined serve every New England state (NH due to being so close to the border in VT).

[hotdogPi]

If we were to allow coastal areas for crossroads, I-91/I-95 in New Haven would fit perfectly, and is the only place where two roads cross where the two combined serve every New England state (NH due to being so close to the border in VT).

I-93 enters Vermont.