Spaulding Turnpike

Spaulding Turnpike
290x172px Map of eastern New Hampshire with Spaulding Turnpike highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by NHDOT
Length:	33.2 mi (53.4 km)
Existed:	ca. 1956 – present
Major junctions
South end:	I‑95 / US 1 Byp. / US 4 / NH 16 in Portsmouth
	US 4 in Dover US 202 / NH 11 in Rochester
North end:	NH 16 / NH 125 in Milton
Location
Counties:	Rockingham, Strafford
Highway system
New Hampshire Highway System Interstate U.S. State Turnpikes

The Spaulding Turnpike is a 33.2 miles (53.4 km) freeway in eastern New Hampshire. Its southern terminus is at the Portsmouth Traffic Circle (Interstate 95 / U.S. Route 1 Bypass) in Portsmouth, a terminus it shares with U.S. Route 4 and New Hampshire Route 16. Its northern terminus is at an interchange with New Hampshire Route 125 in Milton, where NH 16 continues north as a full-access highway.

The Turnpike roughly parallels the Maine border. In the mid-1990s NH 16 was signed onto it.

The Turnpike is part of the New Hampshire Turnpike System operated by the New Hampshire Department of Transportation Bureau of Turnpikes. Along with I-95 between the Massachusetts state border and the Portsmouth Circle (Blue Star Turnpike), the two turnpikes are collectively known as the Eastern Turnpike.

Route description

The Spaulding Turnpike begins in Portsmouth, at I-95 northbound exit 4. Access from I-95 south and US 1 Bypass is facilitated via exit 5 (Portsmouth Traffic Circle). A northbound-only exit connects with Brady Drive, accessible only from the traffic circle. The Spaulding Turnpike becomes a six-lane freeway concurrent with US 4 and NH 16, with a 50 mph (80 km/h) speed limit. Exit 1 in Newington provides access to Pease International Tradeport and the Newington malls. The Turnpike currently narrows to 2 lanes in each direction just north of exit 1.

Exit 2, a northbound only exit/entrance which facilitated access to The Mall at Fox Run and adjacent businesses, was closed permanently on July 16, 2015. Exit 3, a southbound exit/northbound entrance connecting to Woodbury Avenue, was closed in summer 2015 and is being constructed into a full-access interchange with a connection to Pease Tradeport via Arboretum Drive. The new exit 3 is slated for opening in October 2015.

File:Spaulding Turnpike (Northbound).jpg

View along the Spaulding Turnpike approaching the Rochester toll

Exit 4 provides access to Newington Village and industrial areas along Shattuck Way. The Turnpike then crosses the Little Bay Bridge into Dover. Exit 5 (currently closed for construction, scheduled to reopen in late 2015) provides access to Hilton Park and Wentworth Terrace. This exit will also be permanently closed in 2018 as part of a reconstructed exit 6 interchange.

US 4 leaves the Turnpike at exit 6 (Dover Point Road), with the Dover barrier toll located just to the north. Currently there is no access from eastbound US 4 to the northbound Turnpike, nor from the southbound Turnpike to Dover Point Road north. Exit 6 is scheduled to be reconstructed in 2018 to allow for full access in all directions, including connections to Hilton Park and Wentworth Terrace.

North of the toll plaza, the speed limit increases to 55 mph (89 km/h) and the freeway passes west of downtown Dover. Exits 7-9 provide local access via NH 108, NH 9 and Indian Brook Drive, respectively. A park and ride facility is located on Indian Brook Drive just off exit 9. North of exit 9 the speed limit increases to 65 mph (105 km/h).

The Turnpike continues north for several miles and crosses into Rochester, reaching the Rochester barrier toll soon after. The freeway expands to three lanes north of exit 12 and bypasses downtown Rochester to the west. US 202 joins the freeway at exit 13, near the site of another park & ride facility built in 2014. NH 11 also joins the Turnpike 1.6 miles (2.6 km) to the north at exit 15. Both US 202 and NH 11 depart the Turnpike at exit 16 towards East Rochester. The freeway narrows into a Super-2 and the speed limit drops back to 55 mph (89 km/h).

The highway continues north into Milton, with exits 17 and 18 providing local access via NH 75 and NH 125. The Spaulding Turnpike designation ends at exit 18 near Union; NH 16 continues north as a full-access highway.

Tolls

Two barrier tolls are present on the Spaulding Turnpike - one in Dover and one in Rochester. Travel between the barrier tolls (exits 1-6, 7-9, or 11-18) is free of charge.

Toll rates

Toll rates are determined by the class of vehicle (number of axles, single or dual rear tires). The NHDOT currently offers discounted tolls for customers utilizing EZ-Pass transponders. The discount rates are 30 percent for Class 1-4 vehicles and 10 percent for Class 5-12 vehicles.

Class	Vehicle description	Cash Fare	EZ-Pass Fare
1	2 axles, single rear tires	$0.75	$0.53
2	3 axles, single rear tires	$1.00	$0.70
3	4 axles, single rear tires	$1.25	$0.88
4	5 axles, single rear tires	$1.50	$1.05
5	2 axles, dual rear tires	$1.50	$1.35
6	3 axles, dual rear tires	$2.00	$1.80
7	4 axles, dual rear tires	$2.50	$2.25
8	5 axles, dual rear tires	$3.00	$2.70
9	6 axles, dual rear tires	$3.50	$3.15
10	7 axles, dual rear tires	$4.00	$3.60
11	8 axles, dual rear tires	$4.50	$4.05
12	9 axles, dual rear tires	$5.00	$4.50

Southern terminus

Signage on I-95 suggests that the Spaulding Turnpike, NH 16 and US 4 all terminate at the same point. However:

• Milepost readings indicate that the Spaulding Turnpike begins on the exit 4 northbound offramp from I-95, approximately north of the split, and runs by itself for approximately 0.8 miles (1.3 km) before joining NH 16. Southbound ground signage also indicates that the Spaulding Turnpike continues at the right-hand split for I-95 south, ending at "Mile 0" approximately before the merge onto I-95 southbound.
• Signage at the Portsmouth Circle for the freeway now reads "NH 16 North to Spaulding Turnpike and US 4." This implies that NH 16 begins at the circle and approaches the turnpike from the right. Southbound ground signage indicates NH 16 continues at the left-hand split for I-95 north and US 1 Bypass to terminate at the traffic circle. No end signage or milepost is present, however.
• The first westbound signage for US 4 is where the Spaulding Turnpike and NH 16 join. The last eastbound signage is after exit 1, before the split for I-95. No end signage is present.

Exit list

County	Location	mi	km	Old exit	New exit	Destinations	Notes
Rockingham	Portsmouth	0.00– 0.77	0.00– 1.24		—	I‑95 / US 1 Byp. – Portsmouth, Portland, Hampton, Boston	Portsmouth Traffic Circle; southern terminus of Spaulding Turnpike / NH 16; eastern terminus of US 4
		0.92	1.48		—	Brady Drive	Northbound exit and entrance only
	Newington	1.59	2.56		1	Gosling Road – Pease International Tradeport
		2.38	3.83		2	Fox Run Road	Permanently closed July 16, 2015. Traffic must currently detour via exit 1; future access will be via Woodbury Avenue (exit 3)
		2.86	4.60		3	Woodbury Avenue	Formerly southbound exit/northbound entrance; is being constructed into a full-access interchange with a connection to Arboretum Drive on Pease International Tradeport. Currently, there is no exit here, only a northbound entrance; traffic must detour via exit 1.
		3.45	5.55		4	Nimble Hill Road/Shattuck Way – Newington Village
Strafford	Dover	4.39	7.07		5	Hilton Park	No southbound exit, currently closed for realignment to new Turnpike road bed. Will be reopened in late 2015, but is scheduled for permanent closure in fall 2018 with the reconstruction of exit 6.
		4.76	7.66	3	6	US 4 west – Durham, Concord	Northern terminus of US 4 concurrency; signed as exit 6W northbound. No access from US 4 east to Spaulding Turnpike north. Full-access interchange scheduled for construction starting in summer 2016.
		5.01	8.06		6N	Dover Point Road – Dover	No southbound exit
		5.5	8.9	Dover toll plaza (Class 1 vehicles: $0.75 cash / $0.53 EZ-Pass)
		9.14	14.71	4	7	NH 108 – Dover, Durham
		9.45	15.21	5	8	NH 9 to NH 155 – Downtown Dover, Madbury	Signed as exits 8E and 8W
		12.24	19.70	6	9	To NH 9 / NH 108 (Indian Brook Drive) – Dover, Somersworth
	Rochester	17.3	27.8	Rochester toll plaza (Class 1 vehicles: $0.75 cash / $0.53 EZ-Pass)
		18.20	29.29		11	Old Dover Road – Rochester	Northbound exit only
		18.45	29.69	7	12	NH 125 – Rochester, Gonic
		19.66	31.64	8	13	US 202 west (Washington Street) – Rochester, Concord	Southern terminus of US 202 concurrency
		20.76	33.41	9	14	Ten Rod Road – Rochester	Northbound exit/southbound entrance
		21.26	34.21	10	15	NH 11 west (Farmington Road/North Main Street) – Farmington, Alton	Southern terminus of NH 11 concurrency
		22.02	35.44		16	US 202 / NH 11 east to NH 125 – East Rochester, Sanford ME	Northern terminus of US 202 / NH 11 concurrency
	Milton	27.40	44.10		17	NH 75 to NH 125 – Milton, Farmington
		33.11	53.29		18	NH 125 – Union, Milton Mills
						NH 16 north (White Mountain Highway) – Ossipee, Conway	Continuation beyond exit 18
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Closed/former       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access       Tolled

Concurrent routes

• U.S. Route 4: 4.76 miles (7.66 km), Portsmouth to Dover
• U.S. Route 202: 2.36 miles (3.80 km), Rochester
• New Hampshire Route 11: 0.76 miles (1.22 km), Rochester

See also

• New Hampshire Highway System

References

• Steve Anderson's BostonRoads.com: Spaulding Turnpike (NH 16)