Interstate 84 in Connecticut

This article is about the section of Interstate 84 in Connecticut. For the entire route, see Interstate 84 (Pennsylvania–Massachusetts).

Interstate 84
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Route information
Maintained by ConnDOT
Length:	97.90 mi (157.55 km)
Existed:	1969 – present
Major junctions
West end:	I-84 near Brewster, NY
	US 6 / US 7 / US 202 in Danbury Route 8 in Waterbury I-691 near Cheshire Route 9 near W. Hartford I-91 in Hartford Route 2 / Route 15 near E. Hartford I-384 / I-291 near Manchester
East end:	I‑84 near Sturbridge, MA
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Routes in Connecticut Interstate U.S. State SSR SR ← Route 83 Route 85 →

Interstate 84 is an east–west Interstate highway across the state of Connecticut through Danbury, Waterbury, Hartford and Union.

Route description

I-84 (looking eastbound) just before becoming an elevated viaduct to cross downtown Waterbury

The interstate's first exit is at the state line, where it enters the city of Danbury. Here it is designated the Yankee Expressway. Two miles to the east, where US 7 comes in from the south near Danbury Fair Mall to join I-84, it turns to the north. At the next exit, routes 6 and 202 join the highway.

The four-way concurrency ends after 3 miles (4.8 km), when 7 and 202 split off north towards New Milford. Route 6 leaves the interstate at the next exit, and I-84 continues east across the countryside. At Exit 11 it turns to the northeast and descends to cross the Housatonic River on the Rochambeau Bridge, into New Haven County, then climbs into higher ground to the city of Waterbury, which it passes on an elevated viaduct with the eastbound and westbound lanes on different levels. Here the CT 8 expressway intersects.

The eastern heading continues past Waterbury to Milldale, where Interstate 691 splits off to the east. This section has many left-hand exits and entrances and sharp curves, which were built for a planned network of freeways. I-84 heads northeast towards New Britain and Hartford, the state capital and the largest community along its eastern length. After intersecting Interstate 91, the road crosses the Connecticut River on the Bulkeley Bridge, oldest on the Interstate system, then becomes the Wilbur Cross Highway and continues towards the northeast.

I-84 climbs steadily from the Connecticut River Valley and reaches the highest Interstate elevation in Connecticut near exit 73 in Union at 1,008 feet (307 m). The last exit in Connecticut is Exit 74, for Route 171 before crossing the Massachusetts border.

History

Road to Providence

Interstate 84 was originally to head east from Hartford, Connecticut to Providence, Rhode Island.

Original route

The original route of Interstate 84 would have used present-day Interstate 384 to Bolton, Connecticut, then along a never-built section of freeway that would have connected to the US 6 bypass around Willimantic, Connecticut. Another never-built freeway section would have connected it to Interstate 395 and extended I-84 onto State Road 695 in Connecticut, the easternmost portion of the Connecticut Turnpike in Killingly, Connecticut. From there, it would have roughly followed US 6 through western Rhode Island to connect to the present-day US 6 freeway in Johnston. From there, a freeway from Olneyville Square to the Interstate 95–Interstate 195 interchange was briefly considered, but abandoned in favor of what later became the Route 6-10 Connector.

Upgrades

Sections of I-84 in Connecticut were reconstructed and widened in the 1980s. The former I-86 portion from East Hartford to the Massachusetts state line was completely rebuilt from a narrow 4-lane freeway to a much wider profile ranging from 6 lanes at the Massachusetts state line, expanding to 8 lanes in Vernon, to 12 lanes with HOV lanes in East Hartford. Another section through Danbury was widened from 4 lanes to 6 lanes in 1985 and 1986. Widening of the highway through Danbury was funded by Union Carbide as part of building its world headquarters in Danbury. As of 2014 planning is underway for the I-84 Hartford Project to replace and possibly redesign a two mile stretch of mostly elevated highway in Hartford. On April 22, 2015, construction began on widening the highway from Exit 23 to Exit 25A in Waterbury from 4 lanes to 6 lanes.

Environmental concerns

Though the route was basically set in stone in Connecticut, many issues remained in Rhode Island, the biggest of which were major environmental concerns about how the freeway would affect the Scituate Reservoir, which is the main drinking water supply for Providence.

Long-range plans

In the 1992 long-range transportation plan released by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation, a freeway has been added along the original route of Interstate 84 that will connect to the CT 695 freeway on the Rhode Island–Connecticut border.

I-86 relation

Interstate 86
Location:	East Hartford–Union (MA state line)
Length:	31.27 mi (50.32 km)
Existed:	1968–1984
History:	Re-designated as I-84 in 1984

The section of I-84 between East Hartford, Connecticut (at the present-day junction with Interstate 384) and Sturbridge, Massachusetts (Interstate 90) was for a time signed as Interstate 86 (unrelated to present-day Interstate 86 in New York and Pennsylvania). Signs stating "I-84 Ends, I-86 to Boston" (eastbound) and "I-86 Ends, I-84 to Hartford" (westbound) were posted where the change took place. Exit numbering on I-86 was that of the road's predecessor, Route 15, in a sequence beginning on New York's Hutchinson River Parkway. Exits were renumbered to correspond with the rest of I-84 in Connecticut when the road was redesignated in 1984. The present I-384 as well as the present US 6 bypass near Willimantic, both of which were a part of what was then I-84's planned easterly continuation, were also numbered I-84 prior to 1984 even though they lacked any direct connection to the rest of I-84 at that time. (One had to use Silver Lane in East Hartford to travel between the two stretches of the highway.) These two sections were re-numbered I-384 and Rte 6 when what was then I-86 was re-numbered I-84.

Widening projects in Waterbury

A widening project along the congested stretch of I-84 through Waterbury and Cheshire, Connecticut has been beset by cost overruns, delays, and construction defects involving storm drains, as state and federal officials have launched criminal investigations stemming from this project. This episode has waned local enthusiasm for a proposed $2 billion reconstruction of the Mixmaster interchange in downtown Waterbury. Cost estimates for the Mixmaster replacement have increased to $3 billion. CT Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has begun a lawsuit against the contractor and an engineering firm in response to threats from the U.S. DOT to withhold funds from the project. On May 18, 2007, the Waterbury Republican-American reported this area had defective light poles, while Governor M. Jodi Rell released an audit report of the construction disaster. A number of DOT personnel were either fired or reprimanded following the scandal. Meanwhile the FBI and a federal grand jury are investigating the now-defunct construction company and the same DOT officials, which may eventually lead to criminal charges in the case.

Future

The I-84 Hartford Project is a ConnDOT project to address structural deficiencies within the I-84 corridor approximately between Flatbush Avenue (exit 45) and the I-91 interchange in Hartford, including a 3,200-foot (980 m) elevated section known as the Aetna Viaduct. Since it became apparent in the 1980s that this section of I-84 in Hartford was deteriorating, ConnDOT has considered how best to repair or reconstruct the corridor. Since that time, many inspections have been carried out and frequent repairs made to keep the highway safe and functioning.

In 2010, the Capitol Region Council of Governments (CRCOG), the City of Hartford, and ConnDOT collaborated on a study of the corridor to begin the process of exploring reconstruction options. That study looked at several concepts, including the rebuilding of the viaduct "in-kind", as well as several reconstruction alternatives that would alter the configuration of the highway. The alternatives developed for that study were conceptual in nature—they did not look in depth at traffic, engineering feasibility, or environmental impact. However, the strong stakeholder input as part of that effort was helpful in leading to CTDOT's decision to initiate The I-84 Hartford Project, to build on the good work of that earlier study. The I-84 Hartford Project will be a full and comprehensive evaluation leading to a workable solution. The I-84 Hartford Project will examine the feasibility and assess the impact of a range of concepts. Following full examination of the impacts and benefits of feasible alternatives, and, in collaboration with stakeholders and the public, ConnDOT will make a final decision on how to reconstruct this section of the I-84 corridor.

Exit list

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Fairfield	Danbury	0.00	0.00	–	I-84 west – Newburgh	Continuation into New York
		0.29	0.47	1	Saw Mill Road – Ridgebury
		1.23	1.98	2	US 6 / US 202 (Mill Plain Road) / Old Ridgebury Road – Ridgebury, Mill Plain	Access to Connecticut Welcome Center eastbound; signed as exits 2A (Old Ridgebury) and 2B (US 6 / US 202) westbound; former exit 1
		4.54	7.31	3	US 7 south – Danbury Airport, Norwalk	Western terminus of concurrency with US 7
		4.73	7.61	4	US 6 / US 202 west (Lake Avenue)	Western terminus of concurrency with US 6 / US 202
		5.98	9.62	5	Route 39 / Route 53 to Route 37 – Downtown Danbury, Bethel, New Fairfield	No guide cities westbound
		6.48	10.43	6	Route 37 – New Fairfield, Danbury	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		7.16	11.52	7	US 7 north / US 202 east – Brookfield, New Milford	Eastern terminus of concurrency with US 7 / US 202
	Danbury–Bethel city/town line	7.91	12.73	8	US 6 east (Newtown Road / Route 911) – Bethel	Eastern terminus of concurrency with US 6
	Newtown	10.79	17.36	9	Route 25 – Hawleyville, Brookfield, Newtown
		14.10	22.69	10	US 6 west – Newtown, Sandy Hook	Western terminus of concurrency with US 6
		15.23	24.51	11	Route 34 east / Route 25 – Derby, New Haven, Bridgeport	Access via SSR 490
Housatonic River		17.97	28.92	Rochambeau Bridge
New Haven	Southbury	18.64	30.00	13	River Road – Southbury	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		19.83	31.91	14	Route 172 / Georges Hill Road – South Britain, Southbury
		21.58	34.73	15	US 6 east / Route 67 – Southbury, Oxford, Woodbury	Eastern terminus of concurrency with US 6
		24.26	39.04	16	Route 188 – Middlebury, Southford
	Middlebury	28.89	46.49	17	Route 63 – Watertown, Naugatuck	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	Waterbury	29.35	47.23	17	Route 63 / Route 64 west – Middlebury, Woodbury, Watertown	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		30.45	49.00	18	Chase Parkway (Route 845) – Waterbury	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		30.72	49.44	18	West Main Street / Highland Avenue – Waterbury	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		31.08	50.02	19	Route 8 south – Naugatuck, Bridgeport
		31.08	50.02	20	Route 8 north – Torrington	The Mixmaster
		31.20	50.21	21	Meadow Street / Bank Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		31.58	50.82	22	Baldwin Street / Union Street – Downtown Waterbury	Signed eastbound for Baldwin, westbound for Union
		33.74	54.30	23	Route 69 (Hamilton Avenue) – Wolcott, Prospect
		34.36	55.30	25	Harpers Ferry Road	Eastbound exit only; westbound exit closed April 22, 2015
		35.18	56.62		Reidville Drive / East Main Street / Scott Road	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		36.11	58.11	25A	Austin Road – Waterbury, Prospect
	Cheshire	37.30	60.03	26	Route 70 – Cheshire, Prospect
		39.49	63.55	27	I-691 east – Cheshire, Meriden	Exits 1–2 on I-691
Hartford	Southington	39.86	64.15	28	Route 322 – Marion, Milldale, Wolcott
		41.05	66.06	29	Route 10 – Milldale	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance via SR 597
		41.61	66.96	30	West Main Street / Marion Avenue – Downtown Southington, Plantsville
		43.36	69.78	31	Route 229 (West Street) – Bristol, Southington, Plantsville
		45.18	72.71	32	Route 10 (Queen Street) – Southington, Plainville
	Plainville	48.24	77.63	33	Route 72 west – Bristol	Western terminus of concurrency with Route 72
		50.34	81.01	34	Route 372 / Crooked Street – Plainville	Eastbound exit only
	New Britain	50.34	81.01	35	Route 72 east to Route 9 – New Britain, Middletown	Eastern terminus of concurrency with Route 72
		51.03	82.12	36	Slater Road – New Britain
	Farmington	52.01	83.70	37	Fienemann Road to US 6 west – New Britain, Farmington
		54.03	86.95	38	US 6 west – Bristol	Western terminus of concurrency with US 6; westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		54.40	87.55	39	Route 4 – West Hartford, Farmington	Access via Route 508
		55.46	89.25	39A	Route 9 south – Newington, New Britain	Exit 31 on Route 9; no eastbound access from exit 39
	West Hartford	56.31	90.62	40	Route 71 / Ridgewood Road – West Hartford, New Britain, Corbins Corner
		57.15	91.97	41	Route 173 (South Main Street) – West Hartford, Newington, Elmwood
		59.13	95.16	42	Trout Brook Drive – Elmwood	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		59.13	95.16	43	Park Road – West Hartford Center	Access via Route 501
		60.06	96.66	44	Caya Avenue / Kane Street / Prospect Avenue / Oakwood Avenue – West Hartford
	Hartford	60.56	97.46	45	Flatbush Avenue	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance via Route 504
		61.38	98.78	46	Sisson Avenue / West Boulevard	Access via Route 503
		61.75	99.38	47	Sigourney Street	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		62.31	100.28	48A	Asylum Avenue	Signed as exit 48 westbound
		62.31	100.28	48B	Capitol Avenue	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		62.69	100.89	49	Chapel Street / High Street / Ann Ucello Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		62.88	101.20	50	US 44 west (Main Street) to I-91 south – Downtown Hartford	Western terminus of concurrency with US 44; no I-91 signage eastbound
		63.13	101.60	51	I-91 north – Bradley International Airport, Springfield
		63.21	101.73	52	I-91 south – New Haven	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	Connecticut River	63.30	101.87	Bulkeley Bridge
	East Hartford	63.50	102.19	53	US 44 east (Connecticut Boulevard) / East River Drive – East Hartford	Eastern terminus of concurrency with US 44; no westbound exit
		63.94	102.90	54	Route 2 west – Downtown Hartford	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		63.94	102.90	55	Route 2 east – Glastonbury, Norwich, New London
		63.95	102.92	56	Governor Street – Downtown East Hartford	Access via Route 500
		63.98	102.97	–	I-84 east (Restricted Lanes)	Western terminus of I-84 HOV lanes
		64.88	104.41	57	Route 15 south to I-91 south – Charter Oak Bridge, Wethersfield, Newington, New York City	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; northern terminus of Route 15
		65.41	105.27	58	Roberts Street (Route 518) / Silver Lane (Route 502) / Burnside Avenue – East Hartford	HOV exit to Silver Lane westbound
		66.63	107.23	59	I-384 east / Silver Lane / Spencer Street – Bolton, Willimantic, Providence	HOV exit to I-384 eastbound
	Manchester	67.28	108.28	60	US 6 east / US 44 (Middle Turnpike West) / Burnside Avenue – Manchester, East Hartford	Eastern terminus of concurrency with US 6; westbound exit shares a ramp with exit 62
		67.78	109.08	61	I-291 west – South Windsor, Windsor	Exit 6 (I-291)
		68.96	110.98	62	Buckland Street – South Windsor, Manchester
		70.65	113.70	63	Route 30 / Route 83 – Manchester, South Windsor
Tolland	Vernon	72.03	115.92	64	Route 30 / Route 83 – Vernon, Rockville, Talcottville	Eastbound exit 65 shares a ramp with exit 64
		73.04	117.55	65	Route 30 – Vernon Center	Eastbound exit is shared with exit 64
		73.07	117.59	–	I-84 west (Restricted Lanes)	Eastern terminus of I-84 HOV lanes
		74.23	119.46	66	Tunnel Road – Vernon, Bolton
		76.03	122.36	67	Route 31 – Rockville, Coventry
	Tolland	79.56	128.04	68	Route 195 – Tolland, Mansfield, Storrs	Access to the University of Connecticut
		83.38	134.19	69	Route 74 to US 44 – Willington, Tolland, Rockville, Putnam
	Willington	85.14	137.02	70	Route 32 – Stafford Springs, Willington, Mansfield, Willimantic
		87.10	140.17	71	Route 320 south (Ruby Road) – Willington
Windham–Tolland county line	Ashford– Union town line	91.20	146.77	72	Route 89 – Stafford Springs, Westford, Ashford
Tolland	Union	92.41	148.72	73	Route 190 – Union, Stafford Springs
		96.62	155.49	74	Route 171 / Holland Road – Union, Holland, MA
		97.90	157.55	–	I‑84 east – Boston	Continuation into Massachusetts
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       HOV only       Incomplete access

Auxiliary routes

	Interstate	City	Type	Notes
	Interstate 384	Manchester	Spur
	Interstate 684	Greenwich	Bypass route	This route extends for 1.4 miles (2.25 km) in Connecticut, with all interchanges in New York; originally designated as I-87

External links

Interstate 84
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