U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in the U.S. state of

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

is a major east–west

United States Highway The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these hi ...

along

Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...

. It has been replaced by

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadia ...

as a through route, which it closely parallels, and now primarily serves as a local business route. Despite its largely east–west orientation, it is part of a north–south route, and is mostly signed north–south. Most of US 1 through Connecticut encompasses its predecessor, the

Boston Post Road The Boston Post Road was a system of mail-delivery routes between New York City and Boston, Massachusetts that evolved into one of the first major highways in the United States. The three major alignments were the Lower Post Road (now U.S. Ro ...

, and in many towns it is still named Boston Post Road (or Post Road).

Route description

US 1 in Connecticut largely parallels

and has many interchanges with it. The route passes through each city and town of Connecticut bordering the

(in addition to the town of Orange). From

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

to Branford, US 1 is mostly a 4-lane or 6-lane principal arterial road (with some 2-lane sections in dense areas). From Branford to Stonington, US 1 it a 2-lane or 4-lane minor arterial road. US 1 is known as Boston Post Road or Post Road for the majority of its length, but it also encompasses other local street names. The route is known as Putnam Avenue in

, Tresser Boulevard, West Main Street and East Main Street in Stamford, Connecticut Avenue in parts of Norwalk, Boston Avenue in parts of

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonn ...

, New London Road in parts of Groton. In Stonington, the route is known as Stonington Road, South Broad Street, and West Broad Street. US 1 is also known as Main Street in Branford, and Clinton.

Overlap with I-95

US 1 is concurrent with I-95 in two sections, both of which are river crossings. The western concurrency is between exits 68 and 70 from Old Saybrook to Old Lyme, where the two routes cross the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges at Long Islan ...

via the

Raymond E. Baldwin Bridge The Raymond E. Baldwin Bridge is a concrete segmental bridge composed of eleven spans crossing the Connecticut River between Old Saybrook, Connecticut and Old Lyme, Connecticut. The bridge carries Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1, with an average d ...

. The eastern concurrency is between exits 83 and 85 from

New London New London may refer to: Places United States *New London, Alabama *New London, Connecticut *New London, Indiana *New London, Iowa *New London, Maryland *New London, Minnesota *New London, Missouri *New London, New Hampshire, a New England town ** ...

to Groton, where the routes cross the

Thames River The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

via the

Gold Star Memorial Bridge The Gold Star Memorial Bridge is a pair of steel truss bridges that carry both Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1 across the Thames River between New London, Connecticut, US and Groton, Connecticut. The bridge is the largest structure in the state wi ...

. Route 1's two other major bridge crossings closely parallel the I-95 crossings of those rivers. The

Washington Bridge The Washington Bridge is a -long arch bridge over the Harlem River in New York City between the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. The crossing, opened in 1888, connects 181st Street and Amsterdam Avenue in Washington Heights, Manhattan, w ...

over the

Housatonic River The Housatonic River ( ) is a river, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 in western Massachusetts and western Connecticut in the United S ...

, connecting Milford and Stratford, as well as the Tomlinson Lift Bridge over the Quinnipiac River in

New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,023 ...

, is a short distance away from I-95's Moses Wheeler and Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridges, respectively. Route 1 also forms a

frontage road A frontage road (also known as an access road, outer road, service road, feeder road, or parallel road) is a local road running parallel to a higher-speed, limited-access road. A frontage road is often used to provide access to private drive ...

for I-95 in parts of Fairfield, Stratford, and

History

US 1 generally follows the old

and turnpike roads built to replace it. Specifically, the Greenwich Road,

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the re ...

ed in 1792, was the part in

, and became part of the longer

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

-to- Fairfield Connecticut Turnpike (not to be confused with the contemporary Connecticut Turnpike) in 1806. The New Haven and Milford Turnpike (1802) continued from Milford to

, and the New London and Lyme Turnpike (1807) connected Old Lyme with

Route 51

US 1 was originally built where it currently exists in Old Lyme and

East Lyme East Lyme is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 18,693 at the 2020 census. The villages of Niantic and Flanders are located in the town. Geography East Lyme is located in southern New London County, w ...

.However, from 1949 to 1976, US 1 existed where Interstate 95 (I-95) currently exists in Old Lyme and East Lyme. From 1962 to 1976, this stretch of road was Route 51, which traveled for through Old Lyme and East Lyme and was known as the

. In 1976, US 1 returned to the stretch of road, thus eliminating the need for Route 51.

Major intersections

References

External links

US 1 (Greater New York Roads)
{{DEFAULTSORT:U.S. Route 1 In Connecticut 01 1 Connecticut Transportation in Fairfield County, Connecticut Transportation in New Haven County, Connecticut Transportation in New Haven, Connecticut Transportation in Middlesex County, Connecticut Transportation in New London County, Connecticut