Vermont Route 279
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Vermont Route 279 (VT 279), often referred to as the Bennington Bypass, is a
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 ...
bypass of
Bennington Bennington is a New England town, town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester (town), Vermont, Manchester. As of the 2020 United States Census, US Cens ...
in
Bennington County, Vermont Bennington County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 37,347. The shire towns (county seats) are jointly Bennington, Vermont, Bennington ("The So ...
, in the United States. It extends for roughly from the
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
state line northwest of Bennington to an intersection with VT 9 east of the downtown district. At its west end, VT 279 connects to New York State Route 915G (NY 915G), an unsigned reference route leading to
New York State Route 7 New York State Route 7 (NY 7) is a state highway in New York (state), New York in the United States. The highway runs from the New York–Pennsylvania border, Pennsylvania state line south of Binghamton (city), New York, Binghamton ...
(NY 7) in
Hoosick, New York Hoosick is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The population was 6,711 at the 2020 census. It was named from the Hoosic River. The Town of Hoosick is in the northeastern corner of Rensselaer County. History The town of Hoosic ...
. The section of VT 279 west of U.S. Route 7 (US 7) officially opened to traffic in 2004; however, portions of the route have been open in some capacity since the 1970s. An extension of VT 279 southeast to VT 9 was completed in 2012.


Route description

VT 279 begins at the
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...
state line, where the road continues west to NY 7 in
Hoosick, New York Hoosick is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The population was 6,711 at the 2020 census. It was named from the Hoosic River. The Town of Hoosick is in the northeastern corner of Rensselaer County. History The town of Hoosic ...
, as NY 915G, a reference route signed as "To VT 279" eastbound and "To NY 7" westbound. As VT 279, the highway heads northeast from the state line, passing through rural northwest
Bennington Bennington is a New England town, town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester (town), Vermont, Manchester. As of the 2020 United States Census, US Cens ...
as a three-lane road. It bypasses William H. Morse State Airport to the north and passes over a pair of local roadways on its way toward downtown Bennington, where the route crosses the
Walloomsac River The Walloomsac River () from the Native American name, Wal-loom-sac is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 tributary of the Hoosic River in the northeaster ...
and meets VT 67A at a
parclo interchange A partial cloverleaf interchange or parclo is a modification of a cloverleaf interchange. The design has been well received, and has since become one of the most popular freeway-to-arterial interchange designs in North America. It has also bee ...
north of downtown. Past VT 67A, the bypass widens to four lanes and becomes a divided highway as it passes over VT 7A and approaches a complex interchange with US 7. The route briefly
overlap Overlap may refer to: * In set theory, an overlap of elements shared between sets is called an intersection, as in a Venn diagram. * In music theory, overlap is a synonym for reinterpretation of a chord at the boundary of two musical phrases * Ove ...
s with the
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 ...
before continuing eastward as a two-lane highway toward the western edge of
Green Mountain National Forest Green Mountain National Forest is a national forest located in Vermont, a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest typical of the New England/Acadian forests ecoregion. The forest supports a variety of wildlife, including beaver, moose, coyote, b ...
. After , VT 279 turns southward, loosely paralleling the forest's west boundary as it bypasses the northeastern section of downtown Bennington. The route crosses the Roaring Branch of the Walloomsac River before ending at a half-completed
single-point urban interchange A single-point urban interchange (SPUI, or ), also called a single-point interchange (SPI) or single-point diamond interchange (SPDI), is a type of highway interchange. The design was created in order to help move large volumes of traffic th ...
(SPUI) with VT 9 east of downtown.


History

The four-lane portion of VT 279 between VT 67A and US 7 was built in the early 1970s and designated VT 67A Connector in 1974. However, construction did not begin on the remainder of the route west of VT 67A (including the short continuation into
Hoosick, New York Hoosick is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The population was 6,711 at the 2020 census. It was named from the Hoosic River. The Town of Hoosick is in the northeastern corner of Rensselaer County. History The town of Hoosic ...
) until the early 2000s. Work on the bypass concluded with the opening of VT 279 on October 12, 2004. The number "279" was chosen because it provides a bypass for both US 7 and VT 9. Construction on an extension of VT 279 southeast to VT 9 began in July 2007. The highway was built as a two-lane undivided roadway, similar to that constructed between Hoosick and Bennington. It was officially opened on August 30, 2012, and cost roughly $70 million to build. Construction plans for the northern segment called for the existing interchange between US 7 and VT 279 to be reconfigured to accommodate a welcome center located within the exit that was completed and officially opened on October 11, 2013.Vt. Welcome Center opens to crowds
Khynna Kuprian,
Bennington Banner ''The Bennington Banner'' is a daily newspaper published in Bennington, Vermont. The paper covers local, national, and world news. It is distributed throughout Southwestern Vermont and eastern New York (Rensselaer and Washington Counties). The p ...
. Retrieved 2014-01-04.


Exit list

This list includes VT 279's continuation into New York as NY 915G.


See also

*
List of reference routes in New York A reference route is an unsigned highway assigned by the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) to roads that possess a signed name (mainly parkways), that NYSDOT has determined are too minor to have a signed touring route number, ...


References


External links

{{Attached KML
VT 279 at Alps' Roads
279 __NOTOC__ Year 279 ( CCLXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known in Rome as the Year of the Consulship of Probus and Paternus (or, less frequently, year 1032 ''Ab urbe condita''). The den ...
Bennington, Vermont Transportation in Bennington County, Vermont