(Redirected from Interstate 90 (Massachusetts))
The 'Massachusetts Turnpike' (commonly shortened to the 'MassPike' or 'The Pike') is the easternmost 138-mile (222 km) stretch of
Interstate 90. The Turnpike begins at the western border
Massachusetts in
West Stockbridge connecting with the
Berkshire Connector portion of the
New York State Thruway. From there, the Mass Pike heads east, traversing the state and serving the major cities of
Springfield,
Worcester, and
Boston, and ends at
Logan International Airport in
East Boston where the road meets
Route 1A.
Tolls
The Massachusetts Turnpike near the
Chicopee exit
''A Massachusetts Turnpike toll ticket, obtained at exit 1''
The Mass Pike is a
toll road; it costs $4.60 for a Class 1 passenger vehicle to travel eastbound from Exit 1 (
Route 41) in
West Stockbridge to
Logan Airport in
Boston. From Exit 1 in West Stockbridge to Exit 14/15 (
Route 128/
I-95) in
Weston, it is a
closed system toll road, using a system of long-distance tickets, obtained once by a motorist upon entering and surrendered upon exiting at toll gates. The toll gates exist at all exits and entrances from Exit 1 up to Exit 14/15. From Exit 14/15 to its eastern terminus in
East Boston, the Mass Pike is an open system toll road. There are toll plazas at Exit 18/19/20 in
Allston, Massachusetts, in both mainline directions and on the interchange ramps. There is also a toll plaza on the mainline at the westbound entrance to the
Ted Williams Tunnel in
East Boston. Exits 16 and 17 as well as 21 through 26 have no toll plazas on their ramps.
Toll plazas on the interchange ramps at Exit 16 were removed in
1996 at the direction of then
Governor William Weld.
Following protests from
Western Massachusetts residents that their toll money was funding the
Big Dig, a
Boston highway project, tolls were removed on a western portion of the
freeway in July, 1996. As such, no toll is charged for passenger vehicle travel between Springfield (Exit 6,
Interstate 291) and the
New York (Exit 1, West Stockbridge) border in either direction.
Travel between exits 16 and 17, both in
Newton, is a "free movement," as no toll is charged for travel between these two exits. At exit 16 traffic can only enter the Turnpike eastbound and may only exit from the Turnpike westbound.
Motorists can opt to pay their tolls using a toll booth operator or utilize the
Fast Lane electronic toll collection system, whereby motorists install transponders on their cars (typically on the interior of their windshields) and use special lanes at the toll plazas that recognize the transponders and automatically withdraw the toll amount from the motorists' accounts. Fast Lane is compatible with the
E-ZPass electronic toll collection system which is used throughout the US.
The return trip from Logan Airport costs $3 more, since the
Ted Williams Tunnel has a toll only in the westbound direction.
History
The original logo depicted
Paul Revere on horseback with the words "Massachusetts Turnpike Authority" in a circle around him.
The original Masspike pilgrim hat, on a shield for the
Sumner Tunnel.
Plans for the Turnpike date back to at least
1948, when the 'Western Expressway' was being planned. The original section would have connected
Boston's
Inner Belt to
Newton with connections with
US 20 and
Route 30 for traffic continuing west. Later extensions would take the road to and beyond
Worcester. From the beginning, the corridor was included in federal plans for the
Interstate Highway System, stretching west to the
New York state line and beyond to
Albany.
Also included in the route was the planned 'Springfield Bypass', which had been proposed to provide a bypass of
US 20 in the
Springfield area. Part of this route (and that of the eventual Turnpike) used the grading from the never-opened
Hampden Railroad. Similarly, the 'West Stockbridge Bypass' provided a new route of
Route 102 from
Route 183 in
Stockbridge west to Route 102 just east of the state line in
West Stockbridge; this latter route was built prior to the Turnpike.
The Massachusetts Turnpike Authority was created in
1952 by a special act of the Massachusetts General Court (legislature) upon the recommendation of Governor Dever and his Commissioner of Public Works, William F. Callahan. (1952 Acts and Resolves chapter 354; 1952 Senate Doc. 1.) The enabling act was modeled upon that of the Mystic River Bridge Authority (1946 Acts and Resolves chapter 562), but several changes were made that would prove of great importance fifty years later. Callahan served as chairman of the Authority until his death in April, 1964.
When the attorneys were searching land titles along the proposed route, they discovered that sections of the original land had been granted by the King of England to some of the landowner's ancestors. Construction began in
1955, and the whole four-lane road from Route 102 at the state line to
Route 128 in
Weston opened on
May 15,
1957. The
Berkshire Thruway opened on
May 26,
1959, connecting the west end to the
New York State Thruway mainline south of
Albany. Prior to its opening, traffic used
Route 22 and
US 20 in New York. At the Massachusetts/New York state line, one can see where the Turnpike made an abrupt right turn before terminating at Route 102, as the old pavement still exists for Turnpike Authority and State Police vehicles to access this remote stretch of highway.
After political and legal battles related to the 'Boston Extension' inside Route 128, construction began on
March 5,
1962, with the chosen alignment running next to the
Boston and Albany Railroad and reducing that line to two tracks. In September
1964 the part from Route 128 east to exit 18 (
Allston) opened, and the rest was finished on
February 18,
1965, taking it to the
Central Artery.
The
Interstate 90 label was assigned to the Turnpike in
1959 with the completion of plans for the
Interstate Highway System. Early proposals took I-90 across the northern part of the state, along
Route 2, but this was rejected as too costly. With the completion of the Boston Extension, that too was designated as I-90.
In 1991, construction began on the extension of the Mass Pike to
Logan Airport, via the
Ted Williams Tunnel as part of the Big Dig "mega" project. The final extension opened in 2003; the eastern end of I-90 now merges into
Route 1A.
Controversies
MTA Board firings
Since
2001, the Turnpike Authority had come under fire from state politicians in a fight for control of the quasi-state agency. Beginning in 2001, former Massachusetts
acting governor Jane Swift (
R) attempted to fire
Christy Mihos, a former Turnpike
board member and
Jordan Levy, the current Vice
Chairman of the board.
Mihos and Levy had cast votes on the board to postpone a toll hike. Swift objected, saying such a delay was "fiscally irresponsible” and saying the two men "interfered with the effective daily management of the Authority."
[2] Mihos and Levy refused to step down and sued Swift to retain their positions. The
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) ruled that the Turnpike was "not part of the machinery of the government" and therefore not subject to Swift’s decisions
[3].
Proposed MTA/MassHighway merger
Gov.
Mitt Romney (
R), elected in
2002 during a fiscal crisis, ran on a
platform of streamlining state government and eliminating waste. Part of this was the elimination of the Turnpike Authority. Gov. Romney wanted to fold the Turnpike into MassHighway, the state highway department, operated under the Executive Office of Transportation. A first step to this was to replace the Chairman of the Board,
Matthew J. Amorello with someone loyal to the governor. The governor has the power to appoint members to the board, but the SJC advised in an
Amicus brief that "nothing in G. L. c. 81A explicitly provides for the removal and reassignment of the chairperson to the position of "member."
[4][5]
The governor took the case to the court of the public opinion and put enormous pressure on Mr. Amorello to step down. Mr. Amorello announced he would do so in
2007, after Gov. Romney would have left office. Gov. Romney continued to press the legislature to give him the power to remove members from the board, specifically the chairman, pointing to a series of financial and construction mishaps over the last several years. However, the legislature instead sought to keep Mr. Amorello on board by extending the terms of various board members to prevent Gov. Romney from removing Mr. Amorello.
[6]
Ted Williams Tunnel collapse
In response to a fatality caused by a tunnel ceiling collapse on
July 10,
2006, and in response to Mr. Amorello's refusal (at the time) to resign, Gov. Romney took legal steps to have Mr. Amorello forcibly removed as head of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority,
[7] culminating in Mr. Amorello's resignation on
August 15,
2006. The next day,
John Cogliano was sworn in as the new Chairman of the Turnpike Authority by Gov. Romney.
[8]
On
November 27,
2006, departing
Attorney General Tom Reilly (
D) announced the state will launch a civil suit over the collapse of the ceiling in the
Ted Williams Tunnel. The Commonwealth will be seeking over $150 million dollars from project manager
Bechtel/
Parsons Brinckerhoff, builder
Modern Continental Construction Co. and the manufacturer of the
epoxy used to hold the ceiling bolts.
[9]
Toll removal
On
October 18,
2006, the Turnpike board voted to remove all tolls west of the 128 toll plaza in response to a recommendation
[10] made by
Eric Kriss, a former fiscal adviser to the govenor, whom Gov. Romney asked to review the Turnpike situation following the
July 2006 tunnel ceiling collapse.
On
October 19,
2006 members of the
Massachusetts Legislature Transportation Committee were quoted in
the Boston Globe as saying that the governor's actions may require state law to be amended for the toll removal to happen. In addition, questions have been raised in regard to how the State would fund the maintenance of the Turnpike after the removal of the tolls.
The issue of the removal of the tolls is highly charged politically. Several members of the state
Democratic Party declared this as a political maneuver to bolster the gubernatorial campaign of
Republican Lt. Governor Kerry Healy (
R), who was behind in the polls at the time of the announcement. Also, because the MTA Board is composed of appointees of Gov. Romney, Mr. Kriss's former association with the Gov. Romney Administration and the ongoing election at the time, the issue was clouded by accusations of partiality and political agendas from both sides of the aisle.
In the
November 9,
2006 edition of
the Boston Globe, Gov. Romney announced his intention to try to remove the tolls before Governor-elect
Deval Patrick (
D) was inaugurated in
January 2007.
On December 20, 2006, Gov. Patrick said he would oppose the removal of tolls on the portion of I-90 west of route 128, throwing into doubt the toll removal plan.
Turnpike Authority funding and jurisdiction
The Turnpike Authority also owns the
Callahan Tunnel and
Sumner Tunnel, the other two road connections between downtown Boston and
East Boston under
Boston Harbor.
[11] Upon completion of the project, all Big Dig tunnels will also be transferred to its control.
[12]
The Authority receives no state or federal government funding. Its revenues come from tolls, leases on air rights and service areas, and advertising.
[12]
Exits
The Massachusetts Turnpike uses a system of sequential
exit numbered
interchanges. Since the time that the interchanges were originally numbered, more have been added, leading to situations like Exit 11, which is a minor state route, and 11A, which is a major
Interstate Highway 10 miles away.
Also, near Boston, some of the interchanges are solely onramps and are not signed as exits, so, for instance, there is no "Exit 21" signed.
| County | Location | Mile | Exit # | Destinations | Notes |
|---|
| Turnpike begins at New York state line where it continues west as the New York State Thruway (Berkshire section). |
|---|
| Berkshire | West Stockbridge | 2.9 | 1 | Route 41 to Route 102 – West Stockbridge | Westbound exit/eastbound entrance only |
| West Stockbridge Toll Barrier | Western end of ticket system |
| Lee | Lee Service Plaza | Welcome Center at eastbound plaza |
| 10.6 | 2 | US 20 – Lee, Pittsfield | |
| Hampden | Blandford | Blandford Service Plaza |
| Westfield | 40.4 | 3 | Route 10/US 202 – Westfield, Northampton | |
| West Springfield | 45.7 | 4 | I-91/US 5 – Springfield, Holyoke | Hartford exit for eastbound travelers |
| Connecticut River crossing | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicopee | 49.0 | 5 | Route 33 – Chicopee | To Westover AFRB/Airport |
| 51.3 | 6 | I-291 – Springfield, Hartford | Stoplight intersection to I-291 or Burnett Road. |
| Ludlow | 54.9 | 7 | Route 21 – Ludlow, Belchertown | |
| Ludlow Service Plaza |
| Palmer | 62.8 | 8 | Route 32 to US 20 – Palmer, Ware (eastbound), Amherst (westbound) | |
| Worcester | Sturbridge | 78.5 | 9 | I-84 to US 20 – Hartford, Sturbridge (eastbound), New York City (westbound) | Formerly Interstate 86 |
| Charlton | Charlton Service Plaza | Tourist Info centers at both plazas |
| Auburn | 90.2 | 10 | I-290/I-395/Route 12 – Auburn, Worcester | To Eastern Connecticut. |
| Millbury | 94.1 | 10A | Route 146/US 20 – Worcester, Providence | To Route 122A. The interchange was opened in 1998; Route 146 is being upgraded to a freeway from Providence to Worcester. |
| 96.5 | 11 | Route 122 – Millbury, Worcester | To Grafton and Uxbridge |
| Westborough | Westborough Service Plaza | Westbound only |
| Westborough - Hopkinton line | 106.2 | 11A | I-495 – New Hampshire, Maine, Cape Cod | Interchange opened in 1969. |
| Middlesex | Framingham | 111.4 | 12 | Route 9 – Framingham, Marlbourough (westbound) | Access to West Framingham and Southborough |
| Framingham Service Plaza | Westbound only |
| 116.8 | 13 | Route 30 – Natick, Framingham | Access to East Framingham, West Natick and Wayland.
Exit also serves the regional shopping hub and retail district. |
| Natick | Natick Service Plaza | Eastbound only |
| Weston | 123.3 | 14 | I-95/Route 128 – New Hampshire, Maine, South Shore | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance |
| Weston Toll Barrier | Eastern end of ticket system. |
| 124 | 15 | I-95/Route 128/Route 30 – Westwood, Waltham | Westbound exit, eastbound entrance. Exit 15 ramps pay cash toll. |
| Newton | 125.2 | 16 | Route 16 – West Newton, Wellesley | Westbound exit/eastbound entrance; exit became toll-free in 1996 |
| 127.7 | 17 | Newton, Watertown | Washington, Galen, and Centre Streets; toll-free interchange. |
| Suffolk (Boston) |
| Allston/Brighton | 130.9 | 18 | Allston, Brighton, Cambridge | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; To Cambridge Street and Soldiers Field Road |
| 19 | Boston Toll Barrier | Not an actual exit, but 19 is the Interchange # for the mainline toll plaza located at exit 18/20. Exit 18/20 traffic goes to separate plaza. |
| 20 | Allston, Brighton, Cambridge | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; To Cambridge Street and Soldiers Field Road |
| Back Bay | 132.9 | (21) | Massachusetts Avenue | Westbound entrance only, no exit. Number not marked |
| Copley Square | 133.4 | 22 | Prudential Center, Copley Square | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; To Route 9 and Route 28 |
| Theater District | 133.9 | (23) | Arlington Street | Westbound entrance only, no exit. Number not marked |
| South Station | 134.6 | 24ABC | I-93/US 1/Route 3 – South Station, Concord, Quincy | This was the eastern end of the Massachusetts Turnpike and I-90 until 2003. No access from I-93 south to I-90 east. Eastbound Turnpike is toll-free east of this interchange. |
| South Boston | 135.3 | 25 | South Boston | Toll-free interchange. |
| Ted Williams Tunnel (Boston Harbor crossing) | $3 westbound toll. |
| 137.3 | 26 | Logan Airport | |
| East Boston | 137.8 | | (merges with Route 1A) | End of I-90, and end of the turnpike. |
Toll ticket colors
Toll tickets obtained by motorists traveling on the Mass Pike are color-coded based on the interchange where the motorist entered the Pike. In addition to the black stripe on the back which is read by a magnetic reader, this color coding allows rapid identification by the toll collector, expediting the process of toll collection.
★ Exit 1 is orange.
★ Exits 2-8, 11 and 12 are gray.
★ Exit 9 is purple.
★ Exit 10 is light blue.
★ Exit 10A is dark blue/purple.
★ Exit 11A is brown.
★ Exit 13 is yellow.
★ Exit 14 is green.
★ Exit 15 is red.
Service areas
There are 11 service areas (plazas) on the Massachusetts Turnpike, named for the towns in which they are located. Each plaza offers
Exxon gas stations and TigerMart convenience stores. Most offer
McDonald's restaurants, with two plazas (Ludlow WB and Westboro WB) having
Boston Market and
D'Angelo as the main food offerings. Some plazas also have secondary food such as
Auntie Anne's pretzels,
Ben & Jerry's ice cream,
Papa Gino's pizza, and
Fresh City restaurants.
The plazas are:
★
Lee Plaza (Eastbound and Westbound) between exits 1 and 2.
★
Blandford Plaza (Eastbound and Westbound) between exits 2 and 3.
★
Ludlow Plaza (Eastbound and Westbound) between exits 7 and 8.
★
Charlton Plaza (Eastbound and Westbound) between exits 9 and 10.
★
Westborough Plaza (Westbound) between exits 11A and 11.
★
Framingham Plaza (Westbound) between exits 13 and 12.
★
Natick Plaza (Eastbound) between exits 13 and 14.
A
weigh station is located on the eastbound side of the turnpike in Charlton between exits 9 and 10.
The Mass Pike in song and popular culture
★
James Taylor's
1969 song "
Sweet Baby James" contains this mention:
::"Now the first of December was covered with snow
::And so was the Turnpike from
Stockbridge to Boston
::Lord, the
Berkshires seemed dreamlike on account of that frosting
::With ten miles behind me, and ten thousand more to go."
[14]
:No matter where the song is played, some people in the audience always cheer in recognition when these lines are sung.
★ The song "''
Roadrunner''" by
Jonathan Richman (originally with
The Modern Lovers), first recorded in 1972, describes the joys of driving around Boston's highways, including the Mass. Pike
★ The
NRBQ song "
Howard Johnson's Got His Ho-Jo Workin'" was composed by
Terry Adams when he was driving along the Mass. Pike and, according to the liner notes on ''Peek-a-Boo: The Best of NRBQ'', refers to the fact that, at the time the song was written, the only service areas on the highway were operated by
Howard Johnson's.
★ Kansas City's group
The Get Up Kids featured a song titled ''Mass Pike'' on their
1999 EP ''Red Letter Day.''
★ A comedy skit ("
Toll Booth Willie") on
Adam Sandler's
1993 album, ''
They're All Gonna Laugh at You!'', concerns the abuse suffered by a toll-taker in
Worcester, presumably at either exit 10 or 11 on the Massachusetts Turnpike.
★
Worcester radio station
WWFX calls itself "The Pike" in reference to the toll road.
References
1. MTA - Toll Mileage Calculator
2. JORDAN LEVY & another vs. THE ACTING GOVERNOR & another
3. JORDAN LEVY & another vs. THE ACTING GOVERNOR & another SJC-08730
4. ANSWER OF THE JUSTICES TO THE GOVERNOR.
5. REQUEST FOR ADVISORY OPINION, A-108
SJC-09461
6. Mr. Amorello's cynical games
7. Gov. Romney Acts To Remove Mr. Amorello, Citing Public Safety
8. Cogliano Sworn In as New Turnpike Chief, WCVB TV, August 16, 2006
9. Mass. to sue Big Dig firms over tunnel accident, ''Reuters'', 2006-11-27
10. [1]
11. http://www.state.ma.us/eot/downloads/planning/dataResources/Jurisdiction-Distric
t4.pdf
12. http://www.massturnpike.com/aboutus/index.html
13. http://www.massturnpike.com/aboutus/index.html
14. http://www.grinningplanet.com/review-lyrics/james-taylor-sweet-baby-james-lyrics.htm
★ Boston to Chicago,
New York Times May 24, 1959 page XX1
External links
★
Massachusetts Turnpike Authority Website
★
The Roads of Metro Boston - Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90)
★
Big Dig Ceiling Collapse -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Big Dig Problems -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Finishing the Big Dig -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Amorello, options were left exhausted -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
A vacancy at the helm -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Top staff is leaving Mass. Pike -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
I-90 connector reopens to traffic -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Designer proposed more bolts in Big Dig -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Tunnel bolts never inspected -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Pike board acts to end tolls west of Route 128 -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Ending Pike tolls is called illegal -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Late Design Change Is Cited in Collapse of Tunnel Ceiling in Boston -- ''
The New York Times''
★
AG, alleging negligence, will sue in tunnel cave-in -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Reilly says neglect with tunnel was criminal -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Commonwealth of Mass. v. Bechtel Corporation, et al.
★
Cheaper, faster path led to failure -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
I-90 connector west opens -- ''
The Boston Globe''
★
Detailed Map of the I-90 West Connector Tunnel Opening
★
Detour Map
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