The Hartford and New Haven Turnpike was a toll road (turnpike) that was built in 1798-1799 to connect the cities of New Haven and Hartford in the U.S. state of Connecticut. The turnpike was built along the principle of a straight line and connected the court houses of New Haven and Hartford in as straight a route as the terrain allowed. Because of the straight line principle, several intermediate town centers are bypassed by the turnpike. The roads used by the turnpike still exist today but the route is no longer a main road in the New Haven area. In the Hartford area, the turnpike road has been substantially widened and straightened out as the Berlin Turnpike, a major commercial thoroughfare.