Interstate 384

Interstate 384
Route information
Auxiliary route of [[Interstate 84 (Connecticut) |]]
Maintained by ConnDOT
Length:	8.53 mi (13.73 km)
Existed:	1984 – present
Major junctions
West end:	I-84 / US 6 in East Hartford
East end:	US 6 / US 44 in Bolton
Location
Counties:	Hartford, Tolland
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Routes in Connecticut Interstate U.S. State SSR SR ← Route 372 I-395 →

Interstate 384 (abbreviated I-384) is an Interstate Highway located entirely within the state of Connecticut. It runs 8.53 miles (13.73 km) east to west, going from Interstate 84 in East Hartford to U.S. Route 6/U.S. Route 44 in Bolton.

Route description

I-384 serves as the main interstate transportation artery for southern Manchester, beginning right before the East Hartford/Manchester town line and having four of its six exits within southern Manchester. The two major stops off the highway include the Spencer Street commercial shopping district located at Exit 1 and the Main Street/Downtown Manchester area off Exit 3.

The highway is 8 lanes wide west of Route 83, 6 lanes wide to Route 85, and four lanes wide for the rest of the highway's duration.

Special designations

Since May 31, 1996, the segment of Interstate 384 "running from the junction of Interstate Route 84 in Manchester in a general easterly direction to Route 6 in Bolton" has been officially known as the State Trooper Russell A. Bagshaw Highway, in memory of a Connecticut State Police trooper who was killed in the line of duty.^[1]

History

Prior to 1984, Interstate 384 was designated Interstate 84. During that time, current Interstate 84 east of the East Hartford junction was Interstate 86. Originally, the freeway was supposed to end in Johnston, Rhode Island at the Interstate 95-Interstate 195 connector (now the Route 6-10 Connector). The freeway was built to Bolton where it abruptly ends at Route 6. A freeway was to be built towards the present Route 6 bypass at Willimantic, Connecticut. From there, the freeway was to be built towards Interstate 395 in Killingly. After that a freeway was built towards the Rhode Island border at Route 6. There the freeway was to be built parallel to Route 6 towards Johnston. In 1982, Rhode Island canceled their plans because of community backlash and possible changes to the Scituate Reservoir. In 1986, Connecticut canceled their plans and changed I-86 back to I-84 and I-84 was renumbered I-384.

Future

State legislators have proposed to extend I-384 from Bolton to Willimantic along the Route 6 corridor, connecting the existing I-384 with the four-lane Route 6 freeway bypass of Willimantic, which would likely also be redesignated as I-384 as that freeway is already built to Interstate standards. The corresponding stretch of Route 6 is known as "Suicide 6" because of sharp turns and intersections; if completed, I-384 would bypass this stretch of road. On average, at least two people per year die on the "Suicide 6" stretch. If on schedule, this section of I-384 is supposed to be completed by 2025.

A proposed extension of the CTfastrak bus rapid transit line would run in the HOV lanes in I-84 and I-384.^[2]

Exit list

I-384 looking east from Exit 3

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Hartford	East Hartford	0.0	0.0	–	I-84 / US 6 to I-291 west – Hartford, Vernon, Windsor, Boston	Western terminus; I-84 exit 59
	Manchester	1.3	2.1	1	Spencer Street / Silver Lane – Manchester	SR 502
		3.1	5.0	2	Keeney Street / Hartford Road – Manchester
		4.2	6.8	3	Route 83 – Downtown Manchester, Glastonbury
		5.9	9.5	4	Highland Street / Wyllys Street – Manchester
Tolland	Bolton	7.7	12.4	5	Route 85 – Bolton, Colchester	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		8.53	13.73	–	US 6 / US 44 west – Bolton US 6 east – Willimantic, Providence US 44 east – Coventry, Andover, Mansfield	Eastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access

References

1. Connecticut Special Act No. 96-10. http://www.cslib.org/sa/sa10.htm
2. "CTfastrak System Expansion" (PDF). CTfastrak. November 2015. Retrieved 4 March 2016.

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

• I-384 in Connecticut @ Kurumi
• Interstate 384 (Connecticut) @ NYCRoads.com