New England Interstate Route 12

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Route 12
Length:	279.03 mi (449.06 km) Connecticut: 54.46[1] mi (87.63 km) Massachusetts: 64.41[2] mi (103.65 km) New Hampshire: 62.64[3] mi (100.84 km) Vermont: 97.53[4] mi (156.86 km)
Formed:	1922
South end:	I-95/US 1 in Groton, CT
Major junctions:	US 6 in Killingly, CT I-90 in Auburn, MA Route 2 in Leominster, MA Route 101 in Keene, NH US 4 in Woodstock, VT US 2 in Montpelier, VT
North end:	Route 15A/Route 100 in Morrisville, VT

Route 12 is a multi-state north-south state highway in the New England region of the United States, running from Groton, Connecticut through Worcester, Massachusetts and Keene, New Hampshire, to Morrisville, Vermont. Its number dates from 1922, when it was a New England Interstate Route, also known as the Keene Way.

Contents 1 Route description 1.1 Connecticut 1.2 Massachusetts 1.3 New Hampshire 1.4 Vermont 2 History 3 See also 4 References

[edit] Route description

[edit] Connecticut

The section of Route 12 from Groton to Norwich is a primary route, serving the Naval Submarine Base New London and is known as U.S. Submarine Veterans Memorial Highway. North of Norwich, Route 12 is a minor road closely paralleling Interstate 395. Route 12 goes through the following towns in Connecticut: Groton, Ledyard, Preston, Norwich, Lisbon, Griswold, Canterbury (0.14 miles only), Plainfield, Killingly, Putnam, and Thompson.

Town	Milepost	Junction	Notes
Groton	0.0	US 1	Single interchange
	0.1	I-95
	0.2	Route 184
Ledyard	6.9	Route 214
Preston	9.1-9.4	Route 2A
Norwich	12.1-12.4	Route 2
	15.2	Route 97
Lisbon	19.6	I-395
	20.4	Route 138	Begin overlap
Griswold	20.8	Route 138	End overlap
	21.0	Route 201
Plainfield	27.5-27.9	Route 14A
	30.3-30.6	Route 14
	32.1	Route 205
Killingly	36.2-36.5	US 6
	39.5	Route 101
	42.0	Route 21
Putnam	45.6-46.2	US 44
Thompson	48.2	Route 193
	48.9	I-395
	49.9	Route 200
	52.0	Route 131

[edit] Massachusetts

Route 12 goes through the central Massachusetts towns of Webster, Oxford, Auburn, Worcester, West Boylston, Sterling, Leominster, Fitchburg, Westminster, Ashburnham, and Winchendon.

Route 12 has a junction with Interstate 90 (the Massachusetts Turnpike) at an interchange in Auburn that also includes Interstates 290 and 395 and US 20. Route 12 has an interchange with I-290 in Worcester, and two interchanges with I-190, in Worcester and Sterling. Route 12 is a minor road in Massachusetts, having been replaced by I-395 from the Connecticut state line to Auburn, I-290 from Auburn to Worcester, and I-190 from Worcester to Leominster.

[edit] New Hampshire

New Hampshire Route 12 begins at the Massachusetts state line in Fitzwilliam. It goes through Keene, then travels along the east bank of the Connecticut River until Claremont. From there, it crosses the Connecticut River into Vermont.

Town	Milepost	Junction	Notes
Fitzwilliam	5.5	NH 119
Keene	17.0	NH 32
	17.9	NH 101 East	Begin overlap with NH 101
	18.7	NH 10 South
		NH 9 West	End overlap with NH 101 (western terminus of NH 101)
	20.6	NH 9 East / NH 10 North	Grade-separated
	22.0	NH 12A	Southern segment (southern terminus)
Westmoreland	30.3	NH 63
Walpole	36.0	NH 123 West to US 5	Begin overlap
	38.8	NH 123 East	End overlap
	40.4	To U.S. Route 5
Charlestown	43.7	NH 12A	Southern segment (northern terminus}
	48.4	NH 11 West	Begin overlap with NH 11
		NH 12A	Northern segment (southern terminus)
Claremont		NH 11 East / NH 103 East	End overlap with NH 11 Begin overlap with NH 103
	62.1	NH 12A	Old Route 12 continues north on NH 12A End overlap with NH 103 (western terminus of NH 103)

[edit] Vermont

Vermont Route 12 begins at the New Hampshire state line in the town of Weathersfield. It continues north along the west bank of the Connecticut River, overlapped with U.S. Route 5, until Hartland. It then heads northwest to Woodstock and then north through Montpelier, Vermont to end at Vermont Route 100 in Morrisville. Vermont Route 12 runs parallel to Interstate 89 from the Woodstock/Hartford vicinity to Montpelier.

County	Location	Mile	Road(s)	Notes
Windsor	Weathersfield	0.0	NH 12	New Hampshire State Line.
		0.4	VT 131
		0.4	US 5	Southern terminus of duplex.
		1.5	VT 44A
	Windsor	5.4	VT 44
	Hartland	9.4	I-91	I-91 Exit 9.
		10.5	US 5	Northern terminus of duplex.
	Woodstock	18.2	US 4
	Bethel	34.6	VT 107	Southern terminus of duplex.
		36.5	VT 107	Northern terminus of duplex.
Orange	Randolph	44.5	VT 12A	Southern terminus of VT 12A.
		44.6	VT 66
	Brookfield	55.0	VT 65
Washington	Northfield	59.4	VT 64
		60.5	VT 12A	Northern terminus of VT 12A.
	Montpelier		I-89
		71.3	US 2
Lamoille	Morristown	97.5	VT 15A VT 100

Legend
Crossing, no access	Concurrency termini	Decommissioned	Unconstructed	Closed

[edit] History

The southern terminus of Route 12 was originally at New London, Connecticut. It travelled along present day Route 32 (along the west bank of the Thames River) from New London to Norwich, Connecticut. In 1932, when Connecticut decommissioned its New England Routes, Route 12 swapped places with Route 32 south of Norwich. From Norwich, Connecticut to Claremont, New Hampshire, Route 12 still follows its 1920s alignment.

Another alignment change occurred between Claremont, New Hampshire and Taftsville, Vermont in the late 1930s to early 1940s. The original route ran along the east bank of the Connecticut River in New Hampshire instead of along the west bank in Vermont. The original route used what is now New Hampshire Route 12A from Claremont to Lebanon, New Hampshire. It crossed the Connecticut River into White River Junction, Vermont along present-day U.S. Route 4, continuing west along U.S. Route 4 up to Taftsville, where it meets Vermont Route 12. From Taftsville to Montpelier, Vermont, the original route remains unchanged.

The original northern terminus was at Derby, Vermont. In the 1960s, the route was truncated and the northern terminus was moved to its present location at Morrisville, Vermont. The original route ran along what is now Vermont Route 14 from Montpelier to Hardwick, Vermont Route 16 from Hardwick to Barton, and U.S. Route 5 from Barton to Derby.

[edit] See also

• Vermont Route 12A - Formerly New England Route 12A
• Vermont Route 14 - The northernmost section used to be New England Route 12B
• New Hampshire Route 12A

[edit] References

1. ^ Connecticut State Numbered Routes and Roads as of December 31, 2004 (PDF)
2. ^ Executive Office of Transportation, Office of Transportation Planning - 2005 Road Inventory
3. ^ New Hampshire DOT Route Logs
4. ^ VTrans Traffic Log

Browse numbered routes
< Route 11	CT		Route 14 >
< Route 11	MA		Route 13 >
< NH 11D	NH		NH 12A >
< VT 11	VT		VT 12A >
< Route 11	N.E.		Route 12A >