Interstate 91 Massachusetts Descriptions

Interstate 91 travels through the Pioneer Valley of western Massachusetts along the Connecticut River. In Massachusetts, I-91 serves as the major transportation corridor linking the cities of Springfield, Northampton, and Greenfield, the shire towns and most populous cities of the three Massachusetts counties that I-91 enters. The three cities serve as the control cities listed on guide and mileage signs, along with Brattleboro, VT. Brattleboro is featured as the long distance control city throughout I-91's entire northbound length in Massachusetts, beginning with the first northbound conventional mileage sign in Longmeadow. Hartford, CT is featured as a control city on two of the southbound mileage signs.

I-91 enters Massachusetts at the town of Longmeadow, a wealthy suburb of Springfield, though it does not have an interchange there. To access Longmeadow, one must use Connecticut's exit 49 (if traveling north) or Massachusetts' exit 1 in Springfield (if traveling south). After Longmeadow, I-91 enters Springfield and immediately sees many exits in quick succession before entering Chicopee. From I-91 in Springfield, one can access the Basketball Hall of Fame as well as Interstate 291, a spur route heading east from I-91 to give access to the eastbound Mass Pike (I-90) in eastern Chicopee. North of Springfield, I-91 briefly enters Chicopee itself and sees an interchange with the spur of Interstate 391 before turning due west to cross the Connecticut River into West Springfield. I-391 gives better direct access to the cities of Chicopee and Holyoke. From this point northward, I-91 will run on the western side of the river.

Just after the river crossing, I-91 has a major interchange with the east-west Mass Pike, (I-90) before entering the city of Holyoke. Exit 15 provides access to the Holyoke Mall at Ingleside, one of Massachusetts' largest malls. Just after Exit 16, I-91 reduces from a six-lane freeway to a four-lane freeway, and will remain just 4 lanes wide for the rest of its journey northward. After a short exit-less stretch, I-91 enters Northampton and has a few more interchanges. The towns of Hadley and Amherst, home to the main campus of the University of Massachusetts, are accessible from I-91 exits in Northampton via Massachusetts Route 9.

Continuing north, I-91 enters Hatfield, and sees the beginning of its straightest section; nearly 6 miles without so much as a bend in the road. Several exits provide access to U.S. Route 5 and Massachusetts Route 10 in Hatfield and Whately before entering Deerfield. In Deerfield, I-91 passes the headquarters of the Yankee Candle Company, whose flagship store is one of Massachusetts' most popular attractions. Deerfield is also home to Magic Wings Butterfly Gardens and the houses of Historic Deerfield.

I-91 finally reaches the control city of Greenfield, and has two exits there. At Exit 26, a pleasant rest area/visitor information center for Franklin County is available, as well as several restaurants and hotels. I-91's final exit in Massachusetts is Exit 28 in Bernardston. Passing Exit 28, I-91 continues for about 5 more miles before crossing into Vermont.

Massachusetts' portion of I-91 is the only portion to feature motorist-aid call boxes, which are becoming largely obsolete with the growing use of cellular phones. The call boxes are still important, as a good part of I-91 in Massachusetts is rural, unlike many other freeways in the state. There are some places in MA where I-91 runs for several miles between exits, just like I-91 in VT. In addition, Massachusetts is the only state traversed by Interstate 91 in which another numbered highway is co-signed onto the Interstate (in this case, U.S. Route 5, for a half-mile near the Springfield-Longmeadow town line).