Route 40, also known as the Mount Carmel Connector, is a spur route from

Interstate 91 Interstate 91 (I-91) is an Interstate Highway in the New England region of the United States. It provides the primary north–south thoroughfare in the western part of the region. The Interstate generally follows the course of the Connecti ...

(at exit 6) in

North Haven, Connecticut North Haven is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut on the outskirts of New Haven, Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 24,253. North Haven is home of the Quinnipiac University School of Health Sciences, the School of ...

connecting I-91 and Bailey Road in North Haven to Route 10 in the Mount Carmel neighborhood of Hamden. Route 40 is a four-lane

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 i ...

with one intermediate exit leading to/from

U.S. Route 5 U.S. Route 5 (US 5) is a north–south United States highway running through the New England states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont. Significant cities along the route include New Haven, Connecticut; Hartford, Connecticut; and Springf ...

in North Haven. It crosses over Route 15 (

Wilbur Cross Parkway The Wilbur Cross Parkway (also known locally as "The Merritt" in conjunction with its counterpart) is a limited access road in Connecticut, comprising the portion of Route 15 between Milford and Meriden. It is named after Wilbur Lucius Cross, ...

) but does not have an interchange with it. This is the only place in the state where two freeways cross without an interchange.

Route description

Route 40 begins from northbound I-91 in North Haven as the exit 6 off-ramp. The designation runs for along the exit ramp. The expressway then proceeds northwest and is joined by on-ramps from Bailey Road and southbound I-91. The I-91 interchange includes an overpass over the

Quinnipiac River The Quinnipiac River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 long river in the New England region of the United States, located entirely in the state of Conne ...

and railroad tracks. About past the I-91 interchange, the road crosses over another set of railroad tracks, then has an interchange with

. Access to and from US 5 is via Dixwell Avenue (SR 717) or Devine Street (SR 720). The road then continues through a rock cut where it crosses over the

without an interchange about from the US 5 junction. The road soon enters the town of Hamden, where it crosses over the Mill River and closely parallels Route 22 for the rest of its alignment. Route 40 ends at the traffic lights with northbound Whitney Avenue (Route 10). At that intersection it also, down the road, junctions up with CT Route 22, no trucks on both east and west routes. Route 40 in Hamden is also known as the Edward Armeno Memorial Highway, named after a Hamden police officer.

History

Plans for the Mount Carmel Connector first appeared in Tri-State Transportation Commission's recommendations of 1962. This was not acted upon for several years until the Connecticut Highway Department put up the proposal again in 1967. Originally the Mount Carmel Connector was to be part of the expressway relocation of Route 10 to exit 29 of

I-84 Interstate 84 may refer to: * Interstate 84 (Oregon–Utah), passing through Idaho, formerly known as Interstate 80N * Interstate 84 (Pennsylvania–Massachusetts) Interstate 84 (I-84) is an Interstate Highway in the Northeaste ...

Southington Southington is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, it had a population of 43,501. Southington contains the villages of Marion, Milldale, and Plantsville. Geography Southington is si ...

. These plans were never implemented, however. The Mount Carmel Connector was opened in 1972 from I-91 to Dixwell Avenue and State Street (US 5) in North Haven. It was first given an unsigned designation of State Road 724. The expressway was extended north to Whitney Avenue (Route 10) in Hamden in 1976, at which time it was given the designation Route 40. Originally, Route 40 was planned to extend further southeast beyond I-91 to connect with I-95 in Branford.

Exit list

''Exit numbers on Route 40 will be switched from sequential to mile-based as part of a sign and structural supports replacement project that will start in August 2021.''

References

External links

{{Portal, Connecticut
Connecticut State Highway Log

New York Roads, Connecticut Route 10

CT 40 (Greater New York Roads)
040 Transportation in New Haven County, Connecticut Freeways in the United States North Haven, Connecticut Hamden, Connecticut