Route 138 (Massachusetts)
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Route 138 is a north–south
state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered ...
in
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
. From the state line in
Tiverton, Rhode Island Tiverton is a town in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 16,359 at the 2020 census. Geography Tiverton is located on the eastern shore of Narragansett Bay, across the Sakonnet River from Aquidneck Island (also ...
to Milton, Route 138 runs as an extension of Rhode Island Route 138, which is itself an extension of Connecticut Route 138. Route 138's northern terminus is at
Route 28 Highway 28 may refer to: Australia * Cumberland Highway *Mountain Highway, Mountain Highway (Victoria) * – NT Canada * Alberta Highway 28 * British Columbia Highway 28 * Nova Scotia Trunk 28 * Ontario Highway 28 * Saskatchewan Highway 28 Cz ...
in Milton.


Route description

Running generally north, Route 138 crosses from
Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...
into Fall River, where it meets the southern terminus of Route 79 at exit 11 (formerly 5) of Interstate 195, then begins a concurrency with Route 79 and later,
U.S. Route 6 U.S. Route 6 (US 6) or U.S. Highway 6 (US 6), also called the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, honoring the American Civil War veterans association, is a main route of the United States Numbered Highway System. While it ...
. Routes 138 and 6 then travel off of Route 79 and over the Brightman Street Bridge into
Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
, where the concurrency with U.S. Route 6 splits at an intersection with Route 103. Route 138 proceeds through Dighton and into
Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...
, intersecting Route 140 and
U.S. Route 44 U.S. Route 44 (US 44) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that runs for through four states in the Northeastern United States. The western terminus is at US 209 and New York State Route 55 (NY 55) in Kerhonks ...
at Taunton Green. In Raynham, the route has an interchange with Interstate 495 at exit 22 (formerly 8) before continuing into Easton, where it intersects Route 106 before beginning a brief concurrency with Route 123 near
Stonehill College Stonehill College is a private Catholic college in Easton, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded in 1948 by the Congregation of Holy Cross and is located on the original estate of Frederick Lothrop Ames Jr., with 29 buildings that compl ...
. Route 138 meets the western terminus of Route 139 at the beginning of an extremely short concurrency with Route 27 in downtown Stoughton, before crossing into Canton and meeting
Interstate 93 Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
/ U.S. 1 at exit 2 (Exit 2A is for Route 138 south, while 2B is for Route 138 North). The route finally enters Milton, travels by Curry College and the Neponset Valley Parkway, and terminates at
Route 28 Highway 28 may refer to: Australia * Cumberland Highway *Mountain Highway, Mountain Highway (Victoria) * – NT Canada * Alberta Highway 28 * British Columbia Highway 28 * Nova Scotia Trunk 28 * Ontario Highway 28 * Saskatchewan Highway 28 Cz ...
, directly before that route crosses the
Neponset River The Neponset River is a river in eastern Massachusetts in the United States. Its headwaters are at the Neponset Reservoir in Foxborough, near Gillette Stadium. From there, the Neponset meanders generally northeast for about to its mouth at ...
and enters
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
.


History

Until the late 1960's - early 1970's, Route 138 was multiplexed with Route 28 on Blue Hill Avenue to Route 3 (now MA 203) on Morton Street, then to the Arborway and the Jamaicaway. Route 138 turned off onto Brookline Avenue at intersection of the Jamaicaway (where it became the Riverway) and continued to end at US Route 20 and Route 30 in Kenmore Square. During the Blizzard of 1978, Route 138's intersection with
Interstate 93 Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
(which at the time still had
Route 128 The following highways are numbered 128: Canada * New Brunswick Route 128 * Ontario Highway 128 (former) * Prince Edward Island Route 128 Costa Rica * National Route 128 (Costa Rica), National Route 128 India * National Highway 128 (India) Ja ...
concurrent with it) gained some notoriety as the location shot of photos taken featuring cars trapped in the snow along the underpassing
freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
. Parts of Route 138 follows the route of the "Old Bay Road," which was the earliest line of travel between Boston and Taunton.Frederic J. Wood, 1919, "The Turnpikes of New England", p. 118.


Major intersections


References


External links

{{Commons category, Massachusetts Route 138
138 138 may refer to: *138 (number) *138 BC *AD 138 *138 (New Jersey bus) *138 Tolosa 138 Tolosa is a brightly coloured, stony background asteroid from the inner region of the asteroid belt. It was discovered by French astronomer Henri Joseph Per ...
Transportation in Bristol County, Massachusetts Transportation in Norfolk County, Massachusetts