Wilbur Cross Parkway

Wilbur Cross Parkway
Route information
Length:	29.46 mi (47.41 km)
Existed:	1941 – present
Major junctions
South end:	Route 15 / Merritt Parkway in Stratford
North end:	US 5 / Route 15 (Berlin Turnpike) in Meriden
Highway system
Routes in Connecticut Special Service Roads • State Roads

The Wilbur Cross Parkway is a limited access road in Connecticut, comprising the portion of Route 15 between Milford and Meriden. It is named after Wilbur Lucius Cross, a former governor of the state (1931–1939). Being classified as a parkway, commercial vehicles, trailers, towed vehicles except as provided in Section 14-298-240, buses, hearses in a procession or cortege, and large vehicles are prohibited from using the road. The Wilbur Cross Parkway had two toll barriers until 1988; these were located in Milford and Wallingford.

Route description

Traveling north on the Parkway toward Exit 59 and the West Rock Tunnel.

The Heroes Tunnel is the only tunnel through a natural obstacle in Connecticut.

The four-lane Wilbur Cross Parkway begins at the Sikorsky Bridge over the Housatonic River at the town line between Milford and Stratford as a direct continuation of the Merritt Parkway. Immediately after crossing the Housatonic River is the exit for the Milford Parkway, which connects to the Connecticut Turnpike (I-95) and the Boston Post Road (US 1). The Wilbur Cross Parkway runs east northeast through the towns of Milford, Orange, Woodbridge, and New Haven. At the town line between New Haven and Hamden, the parkway passes through the West Rock Tunnel, which was renamed Heroes Tunnel in 2003 by the State of Connecticut to honor first responders. Heroes Tunnel is the only road tunnel through a natural obstacle in Connecticut. The tunnel is lighted solely using low pressure sodium vapor lamps, rare for the United States. From the West Rock Tunnel, the parkway proceeds north through the towns of Hamden, North Haven, Wallingford, and Meriden. After connecting with I-91 in Meriden, the parkway ends, merging onto North Broad Street (US 5). North of Meriden, Routes 5 and 15 continue as the Berlin Turnpike.

On the parkway, there are two service stations. They are located in Orange and North Haven. There are also three abandoned rest areas along its length. These were located in Woodbridge, New Haven, and Meriden.

History

The Wilbur Cross Parkway was originally planned in 1937 as route from US 1 in Milford to the Massachusetts state line in Union. The portion of the parkway south of Meriden was built largely as planned. Construction began in 1939 when federal funds were secured. The first section of the parkway to open was the Milford to Orange segment, from the Housatonic River (Exit 54) to Route 34 (Exit 57-58). Subsequent construction was delayed by World War II. After the war, two more sections of the parkway opened: the segment from US 5 in Wallingford (Exit 66) to US 5 in Meriden (Exit 68), bypassing the city center opened in 1946; and the segment from Route 10A in Hamden (Exit 61) to US 5 in Wallingford opened in 1947.

In 1948, the parkway was designated as part of a new Route 15, connecting New York to Massachusetts. Because the New Haven segment had not yet been completed, motorists were directed to temporarily follow Route 34, US 5, and Route 10A. In November 1949, the New Haven segment, from Exit 57-58 to Exit 61, including the West Rock Tunnel opened. The entire parkway was a toll road when it opened in 1941. Tolls were removed from both the Merritt and Wilibur Cross Parkways in 1988.

Exit list

Note: exit numbers and mileposts continue those of the Merritt Parkway.

Town	#	Mile	Destinations	Notes
Stratford/Milford line		37.5	Wilbur Cross Parkway ends — Road continues as the Merritt Parkway Igor I. Sikorsky Memorial Bridge (Housatonic River crossing)
Milford	54	37.8	To I-95 / US 1 – Milford, New Haven	Milford Parkway
	55A	38.4	Wheelers Farms Road	Southbound exit is unsuffixed.
	55B	38.5	Wolf Harbor Road	Northbound exit only.
Orange	56	41.5	Route 121 – Orange
	57	42.8	Route 34 east – Orange, New Haven	Single cloverleaf interchange.
	58		Route 34 west – Derby
New Haven	59	46.7	Route 63 / Route 69 – Woodbridge, New Haven
		47.1	Heroes Tunnel
Hamden	60	50.2	Route 10 – Hamden, New Haven
	61	51.6	Whitney Avenue — Hamden, New Haven	Split southbound into 61 and 62 (not the same interchange as northbound 62).
	62	52.0	Dixwell Avenue	Northbound exit only.
N. Haven
	63	53.3	Route 22 – North Haven
Wallingford	64	58.4	Quinnipiac St. – Wallingford
	65	58.7	Route 150 – Yalesville, Wallingford
	66	61.1	US 5 – Wallingford, Meriden
Meriden		63.1	ConnDOT Maintenance Facility	Unnumbered exit to Miller Avenue.
	67S	64.1	I-91 south – New Haven	Southbound junction only.
	67	64.3	East Main Street – Downtown Meriden	Northbound exit ramp is 0.3 miles (0.48 km) earlier. Southbound exit ramp is 0.6 miles (0.97 km) later (signed as Exit 67W).
	68N-E	64.7	I-91 north / Route 66 east – Rocky Hill, Middletown	Northbound junction only.
	68W	65.2	I-691 west – Meriden, Waterbury	Northbound junction only. Exit ramp is 0.3 miles (0.48 km) earlier.
		66.7	US 5 south – Meriden	US 5 joins northbound and leaves southbound. Southbound junction only. Limited access ends.
	Wilbur Cross Parkway ends — Road continues as North Broad Street then Berlin Turnpike

References

• Connecticut state highway route log, 2006
• kurumi.com - Wilbur Cross Parkway
• nycroads.com - Wilbur Cross Parkway