Route 57 is a 45.42-mile-long (73.10 km) east–west Massachusetts state route that runs from Monterey to Agawam. The eastern 5.0 miles[2] (8.1 km) in Agawam is a freeway that runs from Route 187 to the route's eastern terminus at U.S. Route 5.[3]
 Route 57 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Route 57 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by MassDOT | ||||
| Length | 45.42 mi[citation needed] (73.10 km) | |||
| Existed | by 1930[1]–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end |   Route 23 / Route 183 in Monterey | |||
 Route 8 in Sandisfield  US 202 / Route 10 in Southwick | ||||
| East end |  US 5 in Agawam | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Massachusetts | |||
| Counties | Berkshire, Hampden | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Route description
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The route begins in Monterey, at its intersection with routes 23 and 183.[4] The section from there to New Marlborough (which is a concurrency with Route 183) primarily takes a southeastern path that passes several stretches of farmland.[3] In New Marlborough, Route 57 splits from Route 183 and follows a mainly easterly route with frequent curves, passing more farmland.[3] During this stretch, there is a brief concurrency with Route 8 in Sandisfield to cross the Farmington River's west branch.[5]
In Southwick, Route 57 starts to enter a more suburban area.[3] There are more concurrencies during this stretch, first with U.S. Route 202 and Massachusetts Route 10 in Southwick, and then with Route 187 in Agawam.[3]
When Route 57 splits off from Route 187, it becomes a freeway,[3] the Henry E. Bodurtha Highway.[2] It has five exits before terminating in a rotary that is served by an interchange from U.S. Route 5.[4]
History
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Route 57 (which was formed by 1930[1]) initially went from Southwick to West Springfield.[1] It was extended to Sandisfield in the mid-1930s and Monterey in the late 1940s.[1]
Construction on the freeway portion began in 1958,[2] with the first portion (to today's Route 159,[1] then called Route 5A[6]) opening in 1961.[2] It was extended to past Route 75 in 1966, with Route 57 being moved to the freeway around this time (the old alignment became Route 147).[1] In 1991, work to extend the freeway to Route 187 began, with the new section opening in 1995.[2] A further extension to Southwick has been proposed, but it was put on hold by then-Governor Mitt Romney in June 2005; nevertheless, Agawam's city council continues to urge the state to construct the extension.[2] The MA 57 freeway exits do not have numbers.
Major intersections
edit| County | Location | mi | km | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berkshire | Monterey | 0.0 | 0.0 |  Route 23 / Route 183 north – Great Barrington, Lenox, Monterey | Western terminus; western end of Route 183 concurrency |
| New Marlborough | 6.0 | 9.7 |  Route 183 south (South Sandisfield Road) – Colebrook, CT | Eastern end of Route 183 concurrency | |
| Sandisfield | 15.2 | 24.5 | Route 8 – Otis, Winsted, CT | Brief concurrency | |
| Hampden | Granville | 27.8 | 44.7 |  Route 189 south – Granby, CT, Hartford, CT | Northern terminus of Route 189 |
| Southwick | 34.3 | 55.2 | US 202 south / Route 10 south – Granby, CT | Western end of US 202 / Route 10 concurrency | |
| 34.9 | 56.2 | US 202 north / Route 10 north – Westfield | Eastern end of US 202 / Route 10 concurrency | ||
| Agawam | 39.6 | 63.7 |  Route 187 north – Westfield | Western end of Route 187 concurrency | |
| 40.4 | 65.0 | Route 187 south – West Suffield, CT | Eastern end of Route 187 concurrency | ||
| Western end of freeway section | |||||
| 41.8 | 67.3 | Garden Street | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||
| 42.6 | 68.6 | Mill Street west | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||
| 43.1 | 69.4 |  Route 75 – West Springfield, Suffield, CT | |||
| 43.9 | 70.7 |  Route 159 – Agawam Center, Windsor Locks, CT, West Springfield | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||
| 45.0 | 72.4 | Editha Avenue | Westbound exit only | ||
| 45.4 | 73.1 |   US 5 to I-91 – West Springfield, Holyoke, Springfield, Hartford, CT | Eastern terminus; rotary | ||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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References
edit- ^ a b c d e f Kelley, Neil. "MA 57". Massachusetts Route Log. neilbert.com. Retrieved 2007-07-06.
- ^ a b c d e f Anderson, Steve. "Henry E Bodurtha Highway (MA 57)". bostonroads.com. Eastern Roads. Retrieved 2007-07-06.
- ^ a b c d e f "Massachusetts Route 57" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved 2007-07-06.
- ^ a b Moraseski, Dan. "MA routes 50-59". MA route log. web.mit.edu. Archived from the original on 2004-12-06. Retrieved 2007-07-06.
- ^ Massachusetts Atlas and Gazetteer (Map) (1st ed.). 1" = 1.3 miles. DeLorme. 1998. p. 45. § J21. ISBN 0-89933-220-X.
- ^ Kelley, Neil. "US 5A". Massachusetts Route Log. neilbert.com. Retrieved 2007-07-06.
External links
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