Byways
Connecticut River Byway
The Connecticut River National Scenic Byway runs on the Vermont and New Hampshire side of the Connecticut River from Massachusetts to the Canadian border. In southern Windsor County it follows U.S. Route 5, running through Springfield, Weathersfield and Windsor, with spurs on VT Routes 44 and 44A to Brownsville and VT Route 11 to downtown Springfield. MARC has been involved with the Byway since before its designation in 1998. MARC is currently coordinating an effort to create travel itineraries along the Connecticut River Byway in Vermont and New Hampshire from Brattleboro to Colebrook.
For more information about the latest projects of the Connecticut River Byway, contact Jason Rasmussen.
Connecticut River Byway Travel Guide
Have you visited the Cady Mausoleum in Brownsville or the Crown Point Military Road in Weathersfield and Springfield? These are just two of 100 historic sites profiled in a new travel guide of the Connecticut River Byway, a project led by MARC. The Byway runs on major roads on both the Vermont and New Hampshire sides of the Connecticut River, and the travel guide covers over 500 miles of roadway between the Massachusetts and Quebec borders. It’s an interesting guide with car, bicycle and kayak routes, as well as information about historic sites along the way. The brochure was printed in November and has started to be delivered to a wide variety of locations along the Byway – including visitor centers, Chambers and historical societies. Click here to view the guide. Contact Jason Rasmussen if you’d like a copy or more information about the project.
Scenic Route 100 Byway
MARC is also involved with a Vermont Byway along Route 100 in the region. The Scenic Route 100 Byway was originally designated on April 20, 2011 as the 8th Vermont Byway and was officially extended on April 18, 2013. It is now Vermont’s second largest Byway at 138 miles, behind the Connecticut River Byway, crisscrossing along the spine of the Green Mountain from the Mad River Byway to the Massachusetts’s border.
The Byway includes Route 100 and small sections of 100A and 103 through the towns of Granville, Hancock, Rochester, Stockbridge, Pittsfield, Killington, Bridgewater, Plymouth, Ludlow, Andover, Cavendish, Weston, Londonderry, Jamaica, Wardsboro, Stratton, Dover, Wilmington, Whitingham and Stamford.
The Byway Committee, which includes representatives of towns, business, chambers of commerce and RPC’s from along Route 100, is now re-organizing to add the new towns and will be starting on several new projects soon.
In 2015 it is hoped that Readsboro will join the Byway – with public hearings anticipated in spring/ early summer.
If anyone would like more information or is interested in joining the Byway Committee, please contact Jason Rasmussen.
Below are some documents relating to the Scenic Route 100 Byway:
Some maps of the expanded Byway:
Scenic Highways
Southern Windsor County also has a state scenic highway – Route 131 in Cavendish – which means that any construction or maintenance work on that section of road must be consistent with the standards established by VTrans pursuant to 10 VSA §425.
For more information on scenic byways and roads contact Jason Rasmussen.