Interstate 190 (Massachusetts)
Interstate 190 (I-190) is a 19.26 miles (31.00 km) auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US state of Massachusetts, maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). Spanning approximately 19 miles (31 km) along a south–north axis, it is a spur route of I-90 (the Massachusetts Turnpike) in Central Massachusetts. However, its southern terminus exists at its split from I-290 in Worcester, which itself splits from the turnpike in Auburn. Its northern terminus lays at an interchange with Route 2 in Leominster.
Interstate 190 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
I-190 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Auxiliary route of I-90 | ||||
| Maintained by MassDOT | ||||
| Length | 19.26 mi[1] (31.00 km) | |||
| Existed | 1983–present | |||
| NHS | Entire route | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |  I-290 in Worcester | |||
| North end |  Route 2 in Leominster | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Massachusetts | |||
| Counties | Worcester | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
Route description
The southern terminus of I-190 is in Worcester. Near the former site of the Greendale Mall, there is an interchange with Route 12 before the highway passes along the eastern shore of Indian Lake and continues through the northern points of Worcester. In West Boylston, I-190 has a second interchange with Route 12 before turning northwest into Holden. The freeway later crosses the Quinapoxet River and then curves to the northeast reentering West Boylston. I-190 intersects Route 140 and then intersects Route 12 once more in Sterling. There is an exit for Route 117 in Lancaster. North of Johnny Appleseed State Park and Lancaster Town Forest, I-190 reaches its northern terminus at Route 2 and Mechanic Street in the city of Leominster.[2]
A portion of the highway was built with extra-wide shoulders, which are painted green, to prevent runoff from contaminating the nearby Wachusett Reservoir.[3]
History
Exit list
All interchanges were to be renumbered to mileage-based numbers under a project scheduled to start in 2016.[4] However, this project was postponed until November 18, 2019, when MassDOT confirmed that, beginning in late mid-2020, the exit renumbering project will begin.[5] On March 12, 2021, MassDOT announced that the I-190 exit numbers will get renumbered for two days starting on March 21. The entire route is in Worcester County.
| Location | mi[6] | km | Old exit | New exit[7] | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Worcester | 0.000 | 0.000 |    I-290 to I-395 south – Shrewsbury, Marlboro, Auburn, Norwich, CT | Exit 22 on I-290, southern terminus | |||
| 1.111 | 1.788 | 1 | 1 |  Route 12 (Gold Star Boulevard / West Boylston Street) | |||
| 2.346 | 3.776 | 2 | 2 | (Frontage Road) Ararat Street – Holden, Greendale | |||
| 3.542 | 5.700 | 3 | 3 | West Mountain Street – Holden, Boylston | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| West Boylston | 3.980 | 6.405 | 4 | 4 | Route 12 – West Boylston | Exit connector enters Worcester before reaching Route 12 | |
| Sterling | 9.272 | 14.922 | 5 | 9 |  Route 140 – West Boylston, Princeton | Southern portion of the exit is in W. Boylston | |
| 14.123 | 22.729 | 6 | 14 | Route 12 – Sterling, Clinton | |||
| Lancaster | 16.894 | 27.188 | 7 | 17 |  Route 117 – Leominster, Lancaster | Exit is partially in Leominster | |
| Leominster | 19.261 | 30.998 | 8 | 19 |  Route 2 east / Mechanic Street – Boston, Leominster Route 2 west – Fitchburg | Signed as exits 19A (west) and 19B (east) northbound; exit 101 on Route 2 | |
| 19.4 | 31.2 | Mechanic Street (Nashua Street) – Leominster | Northern terminus; exit combined with exit 19B southbound; exit 101 on Route 2; old exit 8 | ||||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||||
References
- Starks, Edward (January 27, 2022). "Table 2: Auxiliary Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways". FHWA Route Log and Finder List. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- Google (December 21, 2013). "I-190 Massachusetts" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved December 21, 2013.
- "Ask the Globe". The Boston Globe. June 21, 1997. Archived from the original on December 4, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
Massachusetts Highway spokeswoman Julie Vitek says those paved shoulders and similar ones in West Boylston near the Wachusett Reservoir were built in the 1970s to direct collected melted snow and salt into a Massachusetts highway closed well system, independent from drinking water supplies.
- Commonwealth of Massachusetts (2015). "COMMBUYS — Bid Solicitation FAP# HSIP-002S(874) Exit Signage Conversion to Milepost-Based Numbering System along Various Interstates, Routes and the Lowell Connector". Retrieved January 5, 2016.
- Robert H. Malme (2017). "Massachusetts Interstate Highways Exit Lists". Retrieved January 18, 2017.
- MassDOT Planning Division. "Massachusetts Route Log Application". Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on August 26, 2014. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
- "Exit Numbers and Names: Route I-190 (Worcester to Leominster)". Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on August 26, 2014. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
External links
- History of I-190 MA at Boston Roads
