Site Navigation Connecticut Maine Massachusetts New Hampshire New Jersey New York Pennsylvania Rhode Island Vermont     Interstate 84 Eastbound - Waterbury Vicinity Thanks goes to John Boren with help on captions. Interstate 84 Eastbound River Road passes overhead as the exit ramp for it begins to transition off the freeway. River Road parallels the Naugatuck River. While the signage indicates the exit is for River Road, the actual road that is exited to is Fish Rock Road. Only after a short distance does Fish Rock Road turn into River Road. Photo taken 06/26/05. The on ramp from Exit 13 serves as a brief slow vehicle lane due to the increase in slope of the road. Ichabod Road crosses over Interstate 84 at this point. Connecticut 172 travels north via Lakeside Road/South Britain Road to South Britain. Motorists desiring to visit Kettletown State Park can also take this exit, but it is not signed as such. Photo taken 06/26/05. Off ramp for Exit 14 to Connecticut 172 via Lakeside Road/South Britain Road. Photo taken 06/26/05. Last reassurance shields that include US 6. The US highway will leave Interstate 84 at Exit 15 not to rejoin it until Exit 38 in Farmington. US 6 bypasses Waterbury to the north via Watertown and constitutes principal surface streets in Bristol before overlapping again with Interstate 84. Photo taken 06/26/05. At this exit, US 6 leaves the freeway to head east via Main Street North and is cosigned with Connecticut 67 west. Connecticut 67 is a 31 mile highway that runs from US 7/202 in New Milford to Connecticut 63 in Woodbridge. The portion of road that Connecticut 67 shares with US 6 is a 4-lane divided section. Of note is that while the US 6/Connecticut 67 are overlapping, they are actually considered to be going in opposite directions (i.e. east for US 6 and west for Connecticut 67). This is possible because the road they briefly share happens to be going north. Meanwhile, Connecticut 67 east (Southford Road) serves interests to Southford Falls State Park. Photo taken 06/26/05. A short slow vehicle lane begins. This auxiliary sign points out the towns of Woodbury to the north and Oxford to the south. Kettletown State Park is accessed by taking an immediate right onto Kettletown Road while still on the Exit 15 off ramp. Photo taken 06/26/05. A diamond interchange serves Exit 15. Multiple golf courses and country clubs are located in Southbury nearby the exit. Seymour is 9.8 miles away to the southeast. Photo taken 06/26/05. Connecticut 188 (Strongtown Road) primarily runs north and south 15.92 miles from Connecticut 34 in Seymour to Connecticut 63 in Middlebury. Connecticut 188 north serves Middlebury, while heading south at the interchange also leads to Kettletown State Park and to the Waterbury-Oxford Airport. Photo taken 06/26/05. Interstate 84 ends up crossing over Connecticut 188 again about a half mile before Exit 17. Middlebury is the only town or place of interest noted in conjunction with Exit 16. Photo taken 06/26/05. South Street passes overhead on a rather unique bridge. Photo taken 06/26/05. This last exit in Middlebury is mere hundreds of feet from the Waterbury city line. Connecticut 63 (Straits Turnpike) leads to Middlebury to the north and Naugatuck to the south. What's not mentioned is that the road going south travels through the western edge of Waterbury before reaching Naugatuck. Exit 17 westbound deposits travelers on Connecticut 64 (Chase Parkway) instead. Photos taken 06/26/05. A partially damaged reassurance shield for Interstate 84 with the state name above the numbers. It's not uncommon for ConnDOT to not replace signs until they are completely faded or damaged as evidenced by some of the I-84/I-384 signs in East Hartford and Manchester that didn't get replaced until the end of 2007. Photo taken 06/26/05. The rural nature of the road thus far belies the fact that the massive interchange with Connecticut 8 known as the "Mixmaster Interchange" and the urban area of Waterbury is rapidly approaching which requires that motorists slow to 50 mph. Photo taken 06/26/05. Final sign for Exit 17. The large Country Club of Waterbury and the Whittemore Glen State Park can be reached via Connecticut 63 (Straits Turnpike) south. Photo taken 06/26/05. Connecticut 64, an 8.08 mile highway, reaches its eastern terminus via the above flyover ramp to eastbound Interstate 84. Exit 18 for the Chase Parkway is the last exit before the more urbanized area of Waterbury. Photo taken 06/26/05. First indication of the "Mixmaster Interchange" with Connecticut 8. There is no comma between Exit 19 and 20 which could lead to it being misinterpreted as Exit 1920 if exit numbers ever were to go to four digits. Photo taken 06/26/05. The Waterbury Hospital can be reached from Exit 17 to the Chase Parkway. Photo taken 06/26/05. The Chase Parkway passes overhead while motorists exit to it underneath. Photo taken 06/26/05. Large diagrammatical sign overhead depicting the upcoming interchange with Connecticut 8. Traffic desiring to travel on Connecticut 8 north towards Torrington must exit on the left. Connecticut 8 is 67.34 miles long and is 134 miles long overall as it runs from Bridgeport, CT to Searsburg, VT. This route was part of the original New England Interstates that had consistent numbering across state lines and pre-dated the US Highway system. Photo taken 06/26/05. The auxiliary sign indicates that Naugatuck can be reached from Exit 19 and Thomaston can be reached from Exit 20. The descent begins towards the Central Naugatuck Valley. Naugatuck is the birthplace of Naugahyde. The area was once prosperous in the early days of industrialization, but was severely affected by a loss of a major portion of its manufacturing base. Most new growth in the Naugatuck Valley has been in smaller towns that serve as bedroom communities of New York City and Fairfield County. Photos taken 06/26/05. The Highland Avenue overpass crosses over just before Exits 19 and 20. Photo taken 06/26/05. Interstate 84 eastbound constitutes the highest level of this four level stack interchange and allows for a good view of the city of Waterbury. Exit 20 peels off to the left as an onramp from Highland Avenue joins just a little further ahead. Just before this onramp transitions onto the freeway, eastbound traffic begins a double decking with the westbound traffic all the way until Exit 22. While double decking of freeways is extremely rare in Connecticut, it has come into consideration as a solution to Interstate 95's traffic woes in the Gold Coast portion of the state due to the lack of room for expansion. Photo taken 06/26/05. Motorist get a clear view of the skyline for Waterbury, the Brass City. What they don't see is the tangle of on ramps and off ramps for Connecticut 8 and Interstate 84 as well as surface streets underneath that live up to the name "Mixmaster Interchange". What is also not seen is that the double decked bridge is crossing over the Naugatuck River. Photo taken 06/26/05. Interests to Meadow Street and Bank Street are served by Exit 21. Meadow Street leads to the Waterbury Train Station which serves both Amtrak passengers as well as the Waterbury Branch of the Metro-North Railroad. Bank Street leads to Downtown Waterbury to the north or else back over the Naugatuck River. Photo taken 06/26/05. Exit 22 to Downtown Waterbury via Baldwin Street. The Waterbury Hospital and the UConn-Waterbury Campus can both be reached off this exit. The double decking of eastbound and westbound traffic ends just after this exit as Interstate 84 westbound begins to travel on the ground. This faded I-84 shield has probably been replaced since the time this picture was taken. Photo taken 06/26/05. This exit only lane parallels Interstate 84 for about a mile before motorists get onto Connecticut 69 (Hamilton Avenue) toward either Wolcott to the north or Prospect to the south. The long exit ramp joins Washington Street near the Brass Mill Center mall to provide access with Connecticut 69 north. Photos taken 06/26/05. Exit 23 partitions into separate ramps for Connecticut 69 (Silver Avenue) north via Washington Street east and Connecticut 69 (Hamilton Avenue) south via a direct connection. Washington Street travels west to Main Street. Hamilton Avenue becomes Union Street at the Brass Mill Center mall as it parallels Interstate 84 west. Photos taken 06/26/05. A narrow overpass carries Connecticut 69 (Hamilton Avenue) across Interstate 84 one half mile west of the Exit 25 off-ramp to Harpers Ferry Road. Harpers Ferry Road meanders southward from Main Street and Plank Road to meet Interstate 84 at Reidville Drive, an eastbound side frontage road. Photo taken 06/26/05. Exit 25 leads directly into the intersection of Harpers Ferry Road and Reidville Drive. Reidville Drive parallels Interstate 84 east through an industrial park area to the Scott Road half-diamond interchange (Exit 25 on westbound). Photo taken 06/26/05. Interstate 84 eastbound at the Exit 25 off-ramp to Harpers Ferry Road. There is no return access to Interstate 84 in either direction from the surface road; instead motorists must use Reidville Drive east to access the freeway via Scott Road. Harpers Ferry Road south continues otherwise southwest to junction Connecticut 69 (Hamilton Avenue) at Pearl Lake Road. Pearl Lake Road heads southwest toward Hopeville and South Main Street. Photo taken 06/26/05. Next in line for eastbound motorists is the Exit 25A diamond interchange with Austin Road. Photo taken 06/26/05. Austin Road ends at East Main Street nearby to the north and in a residential area near Scott Road to the south. Captain Neville Drive ties into Austin Road nearby, acting as a frontage road of Interstate 84 east to Plank Road. Photo taken 06/26/05. Continuing east, Interstate 84 approaches Connecticut 70 (Exit 26). Connecticut 70 follows a convoluted path between East Main Street adjacent to Exit 26 10.88 miles east to Connecticut 71 (Old Colony Road) in Meriden. Photo taken 06/26/05. A partial-cloverleaf interchange facilitates the movements between Connecticut 70 (Waterbury Road) and Interstate 84 Exit 26. Waterbury Road ends at East Main Street and Byam Road east of Waterbury. Photo taken 06/26/05. Exit 27 represents the split of Interstate 691 east to Meriden from Interstate 84 east to Hartford. Interstate 691 provides a cut-off to Interstate 91 south for travelers bound to New Haven. Photo taken 06/26/05. Connections with Connecticut 10 (Highland Avenue) lead motorists south from Interstate 691 into the town of Cheshire. Photo taken 06/26/05. The Exit 28 folded-diamond interchange lies within the Exit 27 tri-level stack interchange with Interstate 691. Connecticut 322 leads southeast five miles from the Town of Wolcott to Interstate 84. Photo taken 06/26/05. One half mile west of the Exit 27 ramp departure to Interstate 691 east. Interstate 691 straddles the New Haven and Hartford County line 8.29 miles through Cheshire and Meriden, ending at Connecticut 66 (Meriden Road) east to Middletown. Photo taken 06/26/05. A small diagrammatical overhead outlines the Exit 27 and 28 off-ramps to Interstate 691 east and Connecticut 322 (Meriden Waterbury Turnpike). Marion Road passes overhead in the foreground. The Interstate 691 freeway opened in stages between 1966 and 1987, first as Connecticut 66, and later as Interstate 691. Connecticut 322 represents the original Connecticut 66 route leading west from Meriden through Southington; Connecticut 66 was truncated at its interchange with Interstate 91 & 691.1 Photo taken 06/26/05. Exit 27 departs Interstate 84 east for the eastbound beginning of Interstate 691. Junction Interstate 91 south to New Haven lies eight miles to the east; Middletown requires another seven miles of driving along Connecticut 66. Photo taken 06/26/05. Exit 28 quickly follows onto Connecticut 322 (Meriden Waterbury Turnpike). Connecticut 322 tallies 9.80 miles between Connecticut 69 in Wolcott to the Exit 4 interchange of Interstate 691. The state highway represents the pre-freeway alignment of Connecticut 66 (Interstate 691). Photo taken 06/26/05. A parting shot of the Exit 28 ground level sign for Connecticut 322 on Interstate 84 eastbound. The flyovers to/from Interstate 691 travel in the background. Connecticut 322 (Meriden Waterbury Turnpike) crosses paths with the freeways between the communities of Marion and Milldale within the Town of Southington. Photo taken 06/26/05. Sources: Connecticut Interstate 691 @ Kurumi.com Page Updated March 5, 2008.