Route 9 is a 135.310-mile-long (217.760 km) major east–west state highway in Massachusetts, United States. Along with U.S. Route 20 (US 20), Route 2, and Interstate 90, Route 9 is one of the major east–west routes of Massachusetts. The western terminus is near the center of the city of Pittsfield. After winding through the small towns along the passes of the Berkshire Mountains, it crosses the college towns of the Pioneer Valley and then south of the Quabbin Reservoir and the rural areas of western Worcester County. Entering the city of Worcester from the southwestern corner of the city, it passes through the center of the city and forms the major commercial thoroughfare through the MetroWest suburbs of Boston, parallel to the Massachusetts Turnpike. Crossing the Route 128 freeway circling Boston, it passes through the inner suburbs of Newton and Brookline along Boylston Street, and enters Boston on Huntington Avenue, before reaching its eastern terminus at Copley Square.
Kneeland Street Worcester-Boston Turnpike Ted Williams Highway United Spanish War Veterans Highway | ||||
Route 9 highlighted in red | ||||
Route information | ||||
Maintained by MassDOT | ||||
Length | 135.310 mi[1] (217.760 km) | |||
Existed | by 1933–present | |||
Major junctions | ||||
West end | ![]() | |||
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East end | ![]() | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United States | |||
State | Massachusetts | |||
Counties | Berkshire, Hampshire, Worcester, Middlesex, Norfolk, Suffolk | |||
Highway system | ||||
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Route description
editRoute 9 passes through six counties and twenty-eight cities and towns.
Western end (Pittsfield – Worcester)
editRoute 9 begins in the western Massachusetts city of Pittsfield, at U.S. Route 20. After separating from US-20, it has a brief (.2 mile) concurrency with U.S. Route 7 through the center of that city, then continues east, passing through the towns of Dalton and Windsor, wherein the route reaches its highest point at 2033 ft, in Berkshire County. It continues its winding pass through the small towns of The Berkshires in Berkshire and western Hampshire Counties before passing through the center of Northampton, passing Smith College before its first interstate junction, at Interstate 91. It then crosses the Connecticut River at the Calvin Coolidge Bridge, just downstream from Elwell Island. It goes through the retail area of Hadley before passing the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Amherst College. From Amherst, it wends its way into western Worcester County, south of the Quabbin Reservoir, through small towns until it makes its way into the city of Worcester.
Through Worcester
editOnce in Worcester, Route 9 becomes a major thoroughfare through the city, as Park Avenue, Highland Street (which passes Major Taylor Boulevard), before passing over Interstate 290 and Belmont Street, where University of Massachusetts Medical School and the former Worcester State Hospital are located. At its intersection with McRae Ct., it becomes a divided highway with raised median.
In the MetroWest region (Worcester – Wellesley)
editFrom Worcester, it crosses Lake Quinsigamond into Shrewsbury. At this point, Route 9 becomes the main retail artery of the MetroWest region. Several plazas and chain stores are located along the route as it makes its way towards Northborough, where it crosses U.S. Route 20; Westborough, where it crosses Interstate 495; and eventually in the Golden Triangle retail area of Framingham and Natick, after crossing the Massachusetts Turnpike. It passes Shopper's World and the Natick Mall, New England's largest mall.
In Greater Boston (Wellesley – Brookline)
editBeginning in the Golden Triangle, Route 9 becomes one of the major routes into Boston, serving as a valuable bypass to the Mass Pike and its tolls. It crosses Interstate 95 (also known as Massachusetts Route 128) in Wellesley before crossing the Charles River into Newton and Brookline as Boylston Street. It enters the city of Boston by crossing over Brookline's former namesake, the Muddy River, part of the Emerald Necklace. At this point it briefly becomes Washington Street, then Huntington Avenue, also known as "Avenue of the Arts".
Eastern end in Boston
editRoute 9 loses its raised median briefly between its intersection with South Huntington Avenue and Brigham Circle. It passes the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, which includes Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School and other hospitals; the Museum of Fine Arts; and several colleges and universities, including Northeastern. This stretch is also a major site of baseball history; the first game of the 1903 World Series, baseball's first true World Series, was played at the Huntington Avenue Grounds, the original home of the Boston Red Sox. (The site is now part of Northeastern's campus.) The E branch of the MBTA Green Line roughly follows Huntington Avenue underground from Copley Square until it rises above ground at the Northeastern portal.
Route 9 then operates in a dedicated median of Huntington Avenue between Northeastern University and the Brigham Circle stop, where trains begin street running in mixed traffic to a terminus at Heath Street. Route 9 continues past Symphony Hall and The First Church of Christ, Scientist, which is the mother church of Christian Science. It then passes Copley Place and the Prudential Center complex, before splitting, the eastbound half onto Stuart Street, the westbound onto Saint James Avenue, past Copley Square; both the eastbound and westbound segments of Route 9 end at Route 28.
History
editRoute 9 was established in 1933. From its start in 1810 as a toll road from Brookline to Worcester, Route 9 has undergone transformation into a major highway due to the rise of the automobile, especially with the popularity of Henry Ford's Model T.[2] It took over the alignment of what was Route 115 from Kenmore Square in Boston to Route 22 in North Grafton, part of the original route of US 20 between North Grafton and West Brookfield and the original Route 109 between West Brookfield and US 7 in Pittsfield. Route 9's original route in Boston was along Brookline Avenue from Kenmore Square turning west onto its current path along Boylston Street.[3] Between Worcester and Boston, Route 9 follows the path of the 19th-century Worcester Turnpike, opened in 1810. This route originally included a floating bridge over Lake Quinsigamond in Shrewsbury. From Dalton to Goshen in the Berkshires, the road follows the old Berkshire Trail. The massive expansion of the University of Massachusetts Amherst transformed that part of Route 9 in the late 20th century; this otherwise rural part of the route now has several shops, restaurants, and the mid-sized Hampshire Mall. In the 20th century, Route 9 became the focus for urban sprawl in towns like Newton and Wellesley. Further west, in Framingham, Route 9 was home to one of the first modern shopping malls, the aptly named Shoppers' World.[citation needed]
In Natick, Route 9 is officially the "Ted Williams Highway", named after the Red Sox sports legend Ted Williams, who sported that number.[4] In Newton, it is officially the "United Spanish War Veterans Highway".
From 1903 to 1932, the Boston and Worcester Street Railway ran mostly via Route 9. Today the E branch of the MBTA's Green Line follows Route 9 along Huntington Avenue.[citation needed]
Major intersections
editCounty | Location[1] | mi[1] | km | Destinations | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Berkshire | Pittsfield | 0.000 | 0.000 | US 20 – Lenox, Richmond, Albany, NY | Western terminus | |
0.388 | 0.624 | US 7 south to US 20 east – Lenox, Lee | Western terminus of US 7 concurrency | |||
0.555 | 0.893 | US 7 north – Lanesborough, Williamstown | Eastern terminus of US 7 concurrency | |||
3.592 | 5.781 | Route 8 north – Cheshire, Adams | Western terminus of Route 8 concurrency | |||
Dalton | 5.959 | 9.590 | Route 8 south – Hinsdale, Becket Route 8A begins | Eastern terminus of Route 8 concurrency; western terminus of Route 8A | ||
Windsor | 12.216 | 19.660 | Route 8A north – Savoy | Eastern terminus of Route 8A concurrency | ||
Hampshire | Cummington | 21.874 | 35.203 | Route 112 south – Worthington | Western terminus of Route 112 concurrency | |
Goshen | 28.850 | 46.430 | Route 112 north – Ashfield, Buckland | Eastern terminus of Route 112 concurrency | ||
Williamsburg | 34.138 | 54.940 | Route 143 west – Chesterfield, Worthington | Eastern terminus of Route 143 | ||
Northampton | 42.345 | 68.148 | Route 66 west – Westhampton | Eastern terminus of Route 66 | ||
42.380 | 68.204 | Route 10 south – Easthampton, Westfield | Western terminus of Route 10 concurrency | |||
42.659 | 68.653 | US 5 / Route 10 north – Holyoke, Springfield, Greenfield | Eastern terminus of Route 10 concurrency | |||
43.727 | 70.372 | I-91 south – Holyoke, Springfield | Exit 25 on I-91 | |||
Connecticut River | 44.040 | 70.876 | Calvin Coolidge Bridge | |||
Hadley | 45.597 | 73.381 | Route 47 – South Hadley, Sunderland, Montague | |||
48.355 | 77.820 | Route 116 north – University of Massachusetts, Sunderland, South Deerfield | Western terminus of Route 116 concurrency | |||
Amherst | 49.774 | 80.103 | Route 116 south – South Hadley, Holyoke | Eastern terminus of Route 116 concurrency | ||
Belchertown | 58.703 | 94.473 | US 202 – Pelham, Athol, Belchertown Ctr | |||
59.631 | 95.967 | Route 21 south – Ludlow, Springfield, Belchertown, Holyoke | Northern terminus of Route 21; road formerly went north before construction of the Quabbin Reservoir | |||
Ware | 68.966 | 110.990 | Route 32 south – Palmer, Monson | Western terminus of Route 32 concurrency | ||
70.565 | 113.563 | Route 32 north – Gilbertville, Barre | Eastern terminus of Route 32 concurrency | |||
Worcester | West Brookfield | 74.790 | 120.363 | Route 19 south / Route 67 south – Warren, Palmer | Northern terminus of Route 19; western terminus of Route 67 concurrency | |
75.888 | 122.130 | Route 67 north – North Brookfield | Eastern terminus of Route 67 concurrency | |||
Brookfield | 78.564– 78.596 | 126.437– 126.488 | Route 148 – Fiskdale, Sturbridge, North Brookfield, Barre | 30 yards (27 m) concurrency on Route 9 | ||
Spencer | 83.443 | 134.288 | Route 49 south to US 20 – Sturbridge | Northern terminus of Route 49 | ||
85.004 | 136.801 | Route 31 north – Paxton, Fitchburg | Western terminus of Route 31 concurrency | |||
85.145 | 137.028 | Route 31 south – Charlton, Dudley | Eastern terminus of Route 31 concurrency | |||
Leicester | 90.004 | 144.847 | Route 56 – Oxford, Paxton, Rutland | |||
Worcester | 94.286 | 151.739 | Route 12 south – Auburn, Webster | Western terminus of Route 12 concurrency | ||
95.465 | 153.636 | Route 122 / Route 122A south – Millbury, Grafton, Paxton, Barre | Western terminus of Route 122A concurrency | |||
96.114 | 154.680 | Route 12 north / Route 122A north – West Boylston, Holden | Eastern terminus of Routes 12 / 122A concurrency | |||
96.983 | 156.079 | Route 70 north to I-290 east – Boylston, Clinton, Shrewsbury, Marlboro | Southern terminus of Route 70 | |||
97.229 | 156.475 | I-290 west to I-395 south – Auburn, Norwich, CT | Exit 21 on I-290 | |||
Lake Quinsigamond | 99.298 | 159.805 | Kenneth F. Burns Memorial Bridge Western terminus of the Boston–Worcester Turnpike | |||
Shrewsbury | 101.571 | 163.463 | Route 140 – Shrewsbury, Grafton | Interchange via Grafton Street | ||
Northborough | 103.702 | 166.892 | US 20 – Auburn, Northboro | Cloverleaf interchange | ||
Westborough | 105.585 | 169.923 | Route 135 – Westboro, Hopkinton, Northboro | Interchange | ||
107.537 | 173.064 | Route 30 – Westboro, Southboro, North Grafton | Interchange | |||
108.116 | 173.996 | Computer Drive / Research Drive | Interchange | |||
109.070 | 175.531 | I-495 to I-90 / Mass Pike – Cape Cod, Lowell | Exits 59A-B on I-495 | |||
Southborough | 111.121 | 178.832 | Route 85 – Hopkinton, Milford, Southboro, Marlboro | Cloverleaf interchange | ||
Middlesex | Framingham | 112.949 | 181.774 | To Route 30 – Worcester, Southboro | Interchange via Pleasant Street Connector | |
113.759 | 183.077 | I-90 / Mass Pike – Springfield, Boston | Exit 111 on I-90 / Mass Pike | |||
113.60 | 182.82 | Eastern terminus of the Boston–Worcester Turnpike; western terminus of Worcester Street | ||||
116.096 | 186.838 | Route 30 west (Edgell Road) / Main Street – Framingham, Southborough | Interchange; western terminus of Route 30 concurrency | |||
117.122 | 188.490 | Route 30 east | Interchange; eastern terminus of Route 30 concurrency (westbound) | |||
117.441 | 189.003 | Route 30 east / Route 126 – Framingham, Milford, Wayland, Weston | Interchange; eastern terminus of Route 30 concurrency (eastbound) | |||
118.097 | 190.059 | Ring Road | Shoppers World entrance; eastbound left exit and westbound entrance | |||
Natick | 118.307 | 190.397 | Shoppers World Drive | Shoppers World entrance; westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||
118.944 | 191.422 | Speen Street to I-90 / Route 30 / Mass Pike – Natick | Interchange | |||
119.957 | 193.052 | Route 27 – Natick Center, Sherborn, Cochituate, Wayland, Concord | Cloverleaf interchange | |||
Norfolk | Wellesley | 122.360 | 196.919 | Weston Road – Needham, Weston | Interchange | |
124.551 | 200.445 | Route 16 – Wellesley Hills, Natick | Partial interchange | |||
125.896 | 202.610 | Cedar Street – Newton Lower Falls, West Newton, Needham, Dover | Interchange | |||
126.545 | 203.654 | I-95 / Route 128 – Canton, Providence RI, Peabody, Portsmouth NH | Exits 36A-B on I-95 / Route 128 | |||
Charles River | 126.867 | 204.173 | Bridge; eastern terminus of Worcester Street; western terminus of Boylston Street | |||
Middlesex | Newton | 126.984 | 204.361 | Chestnut Street – Upper Falls, Waban | Interchange | |
127.956 | 205.925 | Centre Street – Needham, Dedham, Newton Centre | Interchange | |||
128.609 | 206.976 | Parker Street – Newton Centre, West Roxbury | Interchange | |||
129.748 | 208.809 | Hammond Pond Parkway – West Roxbury, Hyde Park | Interchange | |||
Suffolk | Boston | 132.936 | 213.940 | Jamaicaway south / Riverway north – Dedham, Providence RI | Interchange | |
134.599 | 216.616 | Route 2A (Massachusetts Avenue) – Cambridge, Roxbury | Interchange | |||
135.028 | 217.307 | Exeter Street | Split of eastbound and westbound lanes into Stuart Avenue and Avenue of the Arts | |||
135.055 | 217.350 | I-90 / Mass Pike west – New York | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; Exit 133 on I-90 / Mass Pike | |||
135.310 | 217.760 | Route 28 south (Clarendon Street) | Eastern terminus | |||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi |
Gallery
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c MassDOT Planning Division. "Massachusetts Route Log Application". Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on August 26, 2014. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
- ^ Barnes, George. "Belmont Street, Worcester". The Worcester Telegram & Gazette. Retrieved 2024-08-12.
- ^ Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Department of Public Works, 1932 Road Map and Detour Bulletin.
- ^ "Route 9 through the years". Retrieved 2012-08-12.
External links
edit- Media related to Massachusetts Route 9 at Wikimedia Commons