Interstate 290 (Massachusetts)

Interstate 290
I-290 highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of I‑90
Maintained by MassDOT
Length	20.16 mi[1] (32.44 km)
Existed	1970 – present
Major junctions
West end	I‑90 / I‑395 / Route 12 in Auburn
	Route 146 / I‑190 / Route 9 in Worcester Route 140 in Shrewsbury
East end	I‑495 / Route 85 Connector in Marlborough
Location
Counties	Worcester, Middlesex
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future Massachusetts State Highway System Interstate US State ← Route 286 I‑291 →

Interstate 290 (abbreviated I-290) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). Spanning approximately 20 miles (32 km) along a west–east axis, it is a spur route of I-90 (the Massachusetts Turnpike) in Central Massachusetts. In the west, it transitions into I-290 from I-395 at their shared interchange with the turnpike and Route 12 in Auburn. Among several state roads, it intersects with Route 146 (built as a direct connection to Millbury and Providence, Rhode Island) and I-190 in Worcester. Its interchange with I-495 and the Route 85 Connector in Marlborough serves as its eastern terminus.

Route description

The I-290 viaduct at Worcester station in 1976

I-290 begins as the continuation of I-395 in Auburn with exits to I-90, Route 12, and the Auburn Mall. 290 continues north through Worcester into Downtown, where Route 146 and I-190 split off. After 146, I-290 has exits for Route 122A, Route 122, downtown, and Route 9. After 190, 290 presumes east to a junction with Route 70, then continues over Quinsigamond Lake into Shrewsbury, where it goes northeast. 290 has a junction with Route 140 and starts east into Boylston and Northborough, where it travels northeast again. 290 enters Marlborough with an exit for Solomon Pond Mall and has its final junction with 495, where it terminates shortly after on the Route 85 Connector.

History

Orson the bear, the mascot of Polar Beverages, is a prominent landmark visible from I-290 in Worcester.

The I-290 Route 146 junction seen under construction as well as Downtown Worcester from above looking north.

Originally, I-290 was to rejoin I-90 in Westborough, roughly where I-495 sits now. However, this route would have run through the town centers of Shrewsbury and Northborough. Additionally, I-290 was intended to be extended past I-495 to I-95/Route 128 in Waltham, but this was canceled under pressure from towns along the planned route. A brief two-lane connector heads to Route 85 as a result of this aborted plan. The interchange with I-495 was originally supposed to be a cloverleaf, but after the plan was canceled, it was modified with a flyover ramp onto 495-northbound. The former exit 12 (Millbury Street eastbound and 146 south westbound) was closed when the Route 146 freeway was completed between the Mass Pike and I-290 in 2007.

Exit list

All interchanges were to be renumbered to milepost-based numbers under a project scheduled to start in 2016.^[2] However, this project has now been indefinitely postponed.^[3]

County	Location[4]	mi[4]	km	Exit[5]	Destinations[5]	Notes
Worcester	Auburn	0.000	0.000	–	I‑395 south – Norwich, CT	Western terminus; continuation from I-395
		0.347	0.558	7	I‑90 / Mass Pike / Route 12 – Auburn	Eastbound exit to Route 12 south; Westbound exit to Route 12 north; Exit 10 on I-90 and Massachusetts Turnpike
		0.070	0.113	8	Route 12 south – Webster	Westbound exit only
		0.930	1.497	9	Swanson Road – Auburn	Eastbound exit to Swanson Road; Westbound entrance from Vine Street
		1.700	2.736		Auburn Street – Auburn	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
	Worcester	3.358	5.404	10	Route 12 north (Hope Avenue)	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		3.565	5.737	11	College Square / Federal Square / Southbridge Street
				12	Millbury Street	Replaced with current exit in 2007
		4.611	7.421	12	Route 146 south to I‑90 / Mass Pike east – Millbury, Providence	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		5.265	8.473	13	Route 122A (Vernon Street) – Kelley Square	Route 146 is accessible by 122A southbound
		5.638	9.073	14	Route 122 – Barre, Uxbridge	No westbound entrance
		5.810	9.350	15	Shrewsbury Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		6.137	9.877	16	MLK Jr. Boulevard (E. Central St) – Downtown Worcester	Union Station, Saint Vincent Hospital, DCU Center
		6.572	10.577	17	Route 9 – Ware, Framingham	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		6.980	11.233	18	Route 70 north to Route 9 – Ware, Framingham	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		7.377	11.872	19	I‑190 north to Route 12 – Holden, Fitchburg	Southern terminus of I-190; Eastbound exit is combined with exit 20
		7.377	11.872	20	Burncoat Street to Route 70 north (Lincoln Street)	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; Eastbound exit is combined with exit 19
		8.421	13.552		Route 70 (Lincoln Street)	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		9.641	15.516	21	Plantation Street – Worcester	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	Shrewsbury	10.173	16.372	22	Main Street – Shrewsbury, Worcester
		12.680	20.406	23A	Route 140 south – Shrewsbury
		12.690	20.423	23B	Route 140 north – Boylston
	Northborough	14.855	23.907	24	Church Street – Northborough, Boylston
		17.913	28.828	25A	Hudson Street – Northborough
		17.925	28.847	25B	Solomon Pond Road – Berlin	Solomon Pond Mall Exit partially in Marlboro, signed as Solomon Pond Mall Road
Middlesex	Marlborough	20.000	32.187	26A	I‑495 south – Cape Cod	Exit 25A-B (I-495)
		20.16	32.44	26B	I‑495 north – Lowell	Left exit eastbound; exit 25A-B (I-495)
		20.16	32.44		To Route 85 – Hudson	Eastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access       Tolled       Route transition

References

External links

Route map:

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Interstate 290 (Massachusetts).

• History of I-290 MA - BostonRoads.com
• Mass. I-290 Current and Speculative Future Exit Numbers List