Interstate 95 hugs the southern coast of Connecticut with Long Island Sound between New York and Rhode Island. The freeway follows the Connecticut (Governor John Davis Lodge) Turnpike from the New England Thruway at Port Chester, New York to Landers Village at Interstate 395. The turnpike is a toll-free facility.
The Connecticut Turnpike is a heavily traveled thoroughfare through such cities as Stamford, Norwalk, Bridgeport, and New Haven. The older design standard of the freeway features an interchange at almost every mile of the turnpike. The numerous entrance and exit ramps cause slowing on the Interstate 95 mainline due to the weaving traffic concerns. Service plazas remain in use along Interstate 95 from the turnpike days serving food, fuel, and tourist information.
The Connecticut Turnpike opened to traffic on January 2, 1958. The west end opening preceded completion of the New England Thruway by a year, leading motorists through Greenwich and Stamford in the interim. A 100-foot section of the Mianus River Bridge in Greenwich collapsed on June 28, 1983. The incident claimed the lives of three motorists and injured several others. Tolls along the Turnpike were dropped in 1986.1
Further east at Groton, the free-section of Interstate 95 opened to traffic after a ceremony held on December 15, 1964.1 This extended the route into Rhode Island.
Interstate 95 Connecticut Highway Guides
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| Junction Interstate 95 Connecticut shield posted on Delavan Avenue eastbound near the Exit 1 interchange at Byram. Delavan Avenue continues Mill Street east from Port Chester, New York to the Connecticut Turnpike at Byram Road, Ritch Avenue, and Byram Shore Road. Photo taken 03/15/00. |
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| Woodmont Road meets Interstate 95 in the city of Milford at Exit 40. This button copy sign, replaced by 2011, was posted along Woodmont Road north at the northbound on-ramp to Interstate 95 opposite Old Gate Lane west. Photo taken 07/27/07. |
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| Rhode Island 216 (High Street) in Bethel becomes Connecticut 216 (Clarks Falls Road) at the state line and quickly intersects Interstate 95 at a diamond interchange (Exit 93). An otherwise rural junction, the two roads meet near Clarks Falls in the Town of North Stonington. Some businesses lie nearby; otherwise the area is home to forests and farmland. Photo taken 06/26/05. |
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| Button copy guide signs posted at the Connecticut 216 (Clarks Falls Road) junction with Interstate 95 in North Stonington. The last interchange within Connecticut lies less than a mile west of Rhode Island 3 (Exit 1). Exit 92 (Connecticut 49) is a 2.5-mile drive to the west while Connecticut 216 intersects the east end of Connecticut 184 (Providence New London Turnpike) just north of the freeway. Photo taken 06/26/05. |
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| Connecticut 216 (Clarks Falls Road) southbound at the northbound on-ramp to Interstate 95 for Providence. Connecticut 216 becomes Rhode Island 216 in 0.2 miles en route to Ashaway and Bradford, Rhode Island. The state route ends 8.5 miles southeast of Interstate 95 at U.S. 1 near the Rhode Island coast. Photo taken 06/26/05. |
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| U.S. 1 and Interstate 95 intertwine in a valley between Sodom and Oswegatchie Hill at Golden Spur and Exit 75. U.S. 1 widens into separate roadways just west of I-95 to accommodate the left side ramp for I-95 south to New Haven. Photo taken 07/28/07. |
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| A U-turn ramp is provided for return access to U.S. 1 north to Waterford for motorists taking Exit 75 from I-95 south. Photo taken 07/28/07. |
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| U.S. 1 northbound reduces to two lanes east of Interstate 95 (Exit 75) across the Niantic River. A left turn provides access to Interstate 95 north ahead. Photo taken 07/28/07. |
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| Interstate 95 north next splits with Interstate 395 and the Connecticut Turnpike for New London. U.S. 1 stays south of the freeway from Golden Spur through Waterbury before joining the freeway again across the Gold Star Memorial Bridge. Photo taken 07/28/07. |
Photo Credits:- 03/15/00 by AARoads.
- 06/26/05 by AARoads and Carter Buchanan.
- 07/27/07 by AARoads.
- 07/28/07 by AARoads.
Connect with:
Interstate 91
Page Updated 01-14-2015.
