Route 9 is a multi-state
state highway in the
New England region of the
United States, running across the southern parts of
New Hampshire,
Vermont and
Maine. Its number was assigned in 1922, when it was designated one of the
New England Interstate Routes, also known as the
Bennington-Wells Route. Much of the route remains intact in Vermont and New Hampshire. In Maine, however, Route 9 has since been extended eastward by about 270 miles (435 km) from its original terminus in
Wells, through
Biddeford,
Portland, and
Bangor, to the
Canadian border in
Calais.
History
Route 9 originally extended across the southern part of Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, from the New York-Vermont border in
Bennington, via
Brattleboro and
Keene, to
Wells. When New York first signed its state highways in 1924, the westward continuation of the route towards
Troy was also designated as
New York State Route 9. In 1927, however, because of the designation of
U.S. Route 9, New York renumbered its former Route 9 as Route 7. By the beginning of 1934, Maine extended its portion of Route 9 by about to the Canadian border in
Calais, creating an alternate route to
U.S. Route 1.
Route description
Vermont
Route 9 begins at the
New York state line in
Bennington, Vermont, where it continues west as
Route 7. It crosses the
Connecticut River from
Brattleboro, Vermont into
Chesterfield, New Hampshire. Route 9 in Vermont is also known as the
Molly Stark Byway.
The VT Route 9 section between the eastern outskirts of Bennington, Vermont and Searsburg, Vermont across Woodford Mountain is notorious for its steep and winding bends, which over the years have contributed to a number of tractor-trailer incidents on this stretch of the road.
New Hampshire
In New Hampshire, Route 9 runs through
Keene,
Concord and
Dover. It runs
concurrent with
U.S. Route 202 for much of its path across the Granite State. The concurrent section of Route 202/9 between Hillsborough and Hopkinton, which passes through
Henniker, is considered one of the most deadly sections of road in the state. Route 9 crosses the
Salmon Falls River from
Somersworth, New Hampshire into
Berwick, Maine.
Route 9A is an alternate route in
Chesterfield.
Map of Route 9 in New Hampshire
Maine
In Maine, Route 9 runs in a rather circuitous route from
Berwick to
Calais, where it ends at the
Canadian border - the
St. Croix River - and becomes
Route 1 in the province of
New Brunswick.
See also
