Massachusetts Route 9

"Ted Williams Highway" redirects here. For the tunnel in Boston, see Ted Williams Tunnel.

Route 9
Worcester-Boston Turnpike Ted Williams Highway United Spanish War Veterans Highway
Route information
Length:	135.5516 mi[1] (218.1492 km)
Existed:	by 1933 – present
Major junctions
West end:	US-20 in Pittsfield
	I-91 in Northampton US-202 in Belchertown I-290 in Worcester US-20 in Shrewsbury I-495 in Westborough I-90 in Framingham I-95/Route 128 in Wellesley
East end:	Route 28 in Boston
Highway system
Massachusetts State Highway Routes ← Route 8A Route C9 →

Route 9 is a major east–west state highway in Massachusetts. Along with U.S. Route 20, Route 2 and the Massachusetts Turnpike, Route 9 is one of the major east-west routes of Massachusetts, and like the others its eastern terminus is in Boston. Starting at Copley Square and passing along Huntington Avenue, Route 9 is a limited access route through the MetroWest suburbs to Worcester, and is also a major alternative to the Pike's toll road west of the city. After passing along major city streets in that city, the road becomes a country route, passing through the central Worcester Hills, the Pioneer Valley and the city of Northampton, and into the Berkshire Hills. The road ends near the center of the city of Pittsfield.

History

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. 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. 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.

In Framingham, Route 9 is officially the "Ted Williams Highway", named after the Red Sox sports legend Ted Williams, who sported that number. 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.

An a cappella group called Route 9, named after the highway, exists at Amherst College.

Route description

Route 9 passes through six counties and twenty-eight cities and towns. It begins in the western Massachusetts city of Pittsfield, at the junction of U.S. Routes 7 and 20, where the latter leaves its concurrency with the former. Concurrent with Route 7 for its first mile through the center of the city, it then turns east, passing through the towns of Dalton and Windsor 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 past the retail area of Hadley before passing the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Amherst College. From Amherst, it winds its way into western Worcester County, south of the Quabbin Reservoir, through small towns until it makes its way into the city of Worcester.

Once in Worcester, Route 9 becomes a major thoroughfare through the city, as Park Street, Highland Avenue (which passes Worcester Center Boulevard), before passing under Interstate 290) and Belmont Street, where University of Massachusetts Medical School and the former Worcester State Hospital are located. From 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 Collection, New England's largest mall.

Beginning 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. 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 becomes Huntington Avenue, also known as "Avenue of the Arts." 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 University. 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.) 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 westbound half onto Stuart Street, the eastbound onto Saint James Street, past Copley Square; both the eastbound and westbound segments of Route 9 end at Route 28 on Clarendon Street, which are on either side of the John Hancock Tower.

Junction list

County	Location	Mile	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Berkshire	Pittsfield	0.00		US 7 south	Western terminus of Route 9; western end of concurrency with US Route 7
		1.1		US 7 north	Eastern end of concurrency with US Route 7
		3.6		Route 8 north	Western end of concurrency with Route 8
	Dalton	5.9		Route 8 south / Route 8A west	Eastern end of Route 8 concurrency; western end of Route 8A concurrency
	Windsor	12.2		Route 8A east	Eastern end of Route 8A concurrency
Hampshire	Cummington	21.8		Route 112 south	Western end of Route 112 concurrency
	Goshen	28.8		Route 112 north	Eastern end of Route 112 concurrency
	Williamsburg	34.1		Route 143 west	Eastern terminus of Route 143
	Northampton	42.3		Route 66 west	Eastern terminus of Route 66
		42.3		Route 10 south	Western end of Route 10 concurrency
		42.6		Route 10 north / US 5	Eastern end of Route 10 concurrency; junction of U.S. Route 5
		43.6		I-91	Junction of Interstate 91 (Exit 16)
		43.8	Connecticut River crossing at Calvin Coolidge Bridge
	Hadley	45.5		Route 47
		48.2		Route 116 north	Western end of Route 116 concurrency
	Amherst	49.7		Route 116 south	Eastern end of Route 116 concurrency
	Belchertown	58.6		US 202
		59.5		Route 21	Northern terminus of Route 21; road formerly went north before building of the Quabbin Reservoir
	Ware	68.9		Route 32 south	Eastern end of Route 32 concurrency
Worcester	West Brookfield	70.5		Route 32 north	Eastern end of Route 32 concurrency at county line
		74.7		Route 19 south / Route 67 south	Northern terminus of Route 19; western end of Route 67 concurrency
		75.7		Route 67 north	Eastern end of Route 67 concurrency
	Brookfield	78.5		Route 148	Short (30 yd) overlap on Route 9
	Spencer	83.4		Route 49 south
		84.9		Route 31 south	Western end of Route 31 concurrency
		85.1		Route 31 north	Eastern end of Route 31 concurrency
	Leicester	89.9		Route 56
	Worcester	93.8		Route 12 south	Western end of Route 12 concurrency
		95.5		Route 122
		96.1		Route 12 north	Eastern end of Route 12 concurrency
		97.0		Route 70 north	Southern terminus of Route 70 at Worcester Center Blvd.
		97.3		I-290	Southbound entrance and northbound exit (17) only from I-290
		99.1	Lake Quinsigamond crossing over Kenneth F. Burns Memorial Bridge
	Shrewsbury	101.6		Route 140
	Northborough	103.7		US 20	Cloverleaf interchange over U.S. Route 20
	Westborough	105.6		Route 135	exit ramps to southbound lane only; northbound lane at-grade
		107.5		Route 30	Single exit ramp interchange over Route 30
		108.7		I-495	Cloverleaf interchange under I-495 (Exits 23 A-B)
	Southborough	111.1		Route 85	Cloverleaf interchange under Route 85
Middlesex	Framingham	113.6		I-90	Entrance to Massachusetts Turnpike at Exit 12
		116.2		Route 30 west	Western end of Route 30 concurrency
		117.1		Route 30 east	Eastern end of Route 30 concurrency (westbound only)
		117.4		Route 30 east / Route 126	Eastern end of Route 30 concurrency (Eastbound); junction of Route 126
		118.3		Ring Road	Shoppers World entrance
	Natick	118.6		Speen Street	Access to Natick Collection and the Massachusetts Turnpike
		119.9		Route 27	Cloverleaf interchange under Route 27
Norfolk	Wellesley	124.4		Route 16	At-grade access to Route 16 on eastbound side only
		124.7		Route 16	Exit ramp from Route 9 to Route 16 on westbound side only
		126.4		I-95 / Route 128	Cloverleaf interchange under Interstate 95/Route 128 Exits 20 A-B
Middlesex	Newton	126.9	Charles River crossing at town line
Norfolk	Brookline	129.9	Town line - The Mall at Chestnut Hill
Suffolk	Boston	132.9	Muddy River - Emerald Necklace
		134.6		Massachusetts Avenue	Location of Boston Symphony Hall and First Church of Christ, Scientist
		135.2		Exeter Street	Split of eastbound and westbound lanes into Stuart Avenue and Avenue of the Arts
		135.5		Route 28	Eastern terminus of Route 9 at Clarendon Street, both lanes
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi      Concurrency terminus •      Closed/Former •      Incomplete access •      Unopened

Gallery

• 

  Eastbound entering Leicester

• 

  Downtown Spencer

• 

  Downtown Ware

• 

  Eastbound in Windsor

References

1. ^ Executive Office of Transportation, Office of Transportation Planning - 2005 Road Inventory

External links