U.S. Route 2
Theodore Roosevelt Highway
Route information
Maintained by NYSDOT and VTrans
Length:	151.604 mi[3] (243.98 km) US 2 continues west into New York for 0.88 miles (1.42 km)[1]
Existed:	1926[2] – present
Major junctions
West end:	US 11 in Rouses Point, NY
	US 7 in Colchester and Burlington VT 12 in Montpelier I-91 / US 5 in St. Johnsbury
East end:	US 2 at Lancaster, NH
Highway system
United States Numbered Highways List Bannered Divided Replaced State highways in Vermont ← VT F-5 VT 3 → Numbered highways in New York Interstate U.S. N.Y. (former) Reference County ← NY 1X NY 2 →

U.S. Route 2 (US 2) is a part of the U.S. Highway System that is split into two segments. Its eastern segment runs from Rouses Point, New York, to Houlton, Maine. In Vermont, US 2 extends 151.604 miles (243.983 km) from the New York state line in Alburgh to the New Hampshire state line in Guildhall. West of Vermont, US 2 continues into New York for another 0.88 miles (1.42 km) to an intersection with US 11 in Rouses Point. US 2 passes through the through the cities of Burlington and Montpelier as it traverses the state. The Burlington to Montpelier route was first laid out as a toll road in the early 19th century. It was later incorporated into the transcontinental auto trail known as the Theodore Roosevelt International Highway in 1919 before being designated as part of US 2 in 1926.

Although the portion of the road from Alburgh to Burlington follows a north-south alignment, US 2 is signed east (heading south during this portion) and west (heading north), making it the longest east-west signed route in the state.

Route description [edit]

U.S. Route 2 in Vermont

This section requires expansion. (January 2010)

The eastern segment of US 2 begins in New York at an intersection with US 11 just one mile (1.6 km) south of the Canadian border in Rouses Point. From there, it crosses Lake Champlain into Grand Isle County, Vermont, traversing the length of the county and crossing Lake Champlain over several bridges until it reaches the mainland in Milton and Chittenden County. From there it travels south to Burlington, where it begins to closely parallel Interstate 89 and the Winooski River all the way to Montpelier and Washington County. In Montpelier, the main route bypasses the downtown area using Memorial Drive, while a business loop using State Street serves downtown. After leaving Montpelier, the road turns north-eastward, crossing into Caledonia County and passing through Saint Johnsbury. It then passes into rural Essex County, and eventually crosses the Connecticut River from Guildhall, Vermont into Lancaster, New Hampshire.

History [edit]

An improved road between the main settlements of Burlington and Montpelier was first established from old footpaths in 1805, when the 36-mile (58 km) Winooski Turnpike was chartered by the state of Vermont. The old turnpike road utilized the relatively flat banks of the Winooski River to connect the two major towns and opened to traffic several years after the company was chartered. The road ceased operating as a toll road several decades later in 1852, when the road became publicly owned.^[4] The route of the old Winooski Turnpike between Burlington and Montpelier was later incorporated into the old Theodore Roosevelt International Highway. This cross-country auto trail, named in honor of recently deceased ex-president and naturalist Theodore Roosevelt, was organized in February 1919 to connect Portland, Maine with Portland, Oregon.^[5] Within Vermont, the auto trail used what is now US 2 from Vermont Route 129 (VT 129) south of Alburgh center to VT 18 east of St. Johnsbury center.^[6]

Before being designated as US 2, the current alignment was part of several inter-state routes of the 1922 New England road marking system. From Danville eastward to the state line, the US 2 alignment was part of Route 15; it was part of Route 18 between Montpelier and Danville; it used Route 14 between Burlington and Montpelier; and it used Route 30 between Alburgh and Burlington.^[7] When the plans for the U.S. Highway System were first drawn up in 1925, US 2 began in Alburgh and was routed along the Roosevelt Highway from Alburgh to Montpelier. Both US 2 and the Roosevelt Highway connected Montpelier to St. Johnsbury; however, the Roosevelt Highway used a direct path along former Route 18 while US 2 was initially assigned to then-Route 25 (modern US 302) to Wells River, where it overlapped proposed US 5 north to St. Johnsbury. From St. Johnsbury, the Roosevelt Highway turned southeast towards Portland along modern VT 18 while US 2 continued east along former Route 15 to Bangor.^[8] No changes were made to US 2 in the final system plan approved on November 11, 1926.^[2] US 2 was relocated onto its modern alignment along the original Roosevelt Highway route between Montpelier and St. Johnsbury in the mid-1930s. The original alignment of US 2 became part of the newly designated US 302.^[9][10]

Initially, Rouses Point, New York, and Alburgh, Vermont, were connected by way of a ferry across the Richelieu River. The ferry ran from the center of Rouses Point to Vermont's Windmill Point, where it connected to VT F-1, an east–west route linking Windmill Point to Alburgh.^[11] When US 2 was assigned, it was overlaid on the pre-existing VT F-1, following the route and the ferry to the New York state line, where US 2 initially ended.^[12] In 1937, a new tolled swing bridge across the Richelieu River opened, carrying an extended US 2 between US 11 in Rouses Point and Alburgh. The swing bridge was replaced with a toll-free permanent bridge on September 22, 1987.^[13]

Suffixed routes [edit]

US 2 has two suffixed routes in the state of Vermont.

• VT 2A (13.853 miles or 22.294 kilometres) is a largely alternate route of US 2 between St. George and Colchester. It begins at VT 116 in St. George and continues north and west through Williston and Essex Junction before ending at US 2 and US 7 in Colchester.^[3] Much of the portion of VT 2A that runs through Williston has been expanded from two lanes to four, particularly the stretch between US 2 and Interstate 89 (I-89), to accommodate the many restaurants, offices, and stores that have been developed there.
• VT 2B (3.459 miles or 5.567 kilometres) is an east–west alternate route of US 2 between Danville and St. Johnsbury in Caledonia County. It leaves US 2 midway between Danville and St. Johnsbury and rejoins its parent in St. Johnsbury.^[3] VT 2B is named Parker Road for its entire length.

Major intersections of VT 2A

The entire route is in Chittenden County.

Location	Mile[3]	km	Destinations	Notes
St. George	0.000	0.000	VT 116
Williston	4.911	7.903	I-89	Exit 12 (I-89)
	5.703	9.178	US 2
Essex Junction	8.591	13.826	VT 15 / VT 117	Western terminus of VT 117
Essex	10.624	17.098	VT 289	Exit 7 (VT 289); western terminus of VT 289
Colchester	13.626	21.929	To US 2 / US 7 south (VT 127)
	13.853	22.294	US 2 / US 7 north
Concurrency terminus •      Closed •      Unopened

Major intersections [edit]

The short continuation of US 2 into New York is included below.

County	Location	Mile[3][1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Clinton	Rouses Point	0.00	0.00	US 11
Lake Champlain		0.88 0.000	1.42 0.000	New York – Vermont state line
Grand Isle	Alburgh	3.152	5.073	VT 225
		6.234	10.033	VT 78
		11.633	18.721	VT 129
	Grand Isle	25.609	41.214	VT 314
	South Hero	28.504	45.873	VT 314
Chittenden	Colchester	39.921	64.247	I-89	Exit 17 (I-89)
		40.011	64.391	US 7 north	North end of US 2 / US 7 overlap
		42.901	69.042	VT 2A
		43.095	69.355	VT 127
	Winooski	47.338	76.183	VT 15	Rotary-style intersection
	Burlington	48.631	78.264	ALT US 7
		49.571	79.777	US 7 south	South end of US 2 / US 7 overlap
	South Burlington	50.685	81.570	I-89	Exit 14 (I-89)
		51.406	82.730	VT 116
	Williston	54.736	88.089	VT 2A
	Richmond	60.160	96.818	VT 117
		60.221	96.916	I-89	Exit 11 (I-89)
Washington	Waterbury	75.039	120.764	VT 100 north	West end of US 2 / VT 100 overlap
	Moretown	76.354	122.880	VT 100 south	East end of US 2 / VT 100 overlap
	Middlesex	80.798	130.032	VT 100B
	Montpelier	86.735	139.586	BR US 2
		86.914	139.875	Montpelier State Highway (Memorial Drive)	To exit 8 (I-89)
		87.336	140.554	BR US 2 / VT 12
		89.060	143.328	US 302	Rotary-style intersection
	East Montpelier	93.753	150.881	VT 14 south	West end of US 2 / VT 14 overlap
		93.960	151.214	VT 14 north	East end of US 2 / VT 14 overlap
	Plainfield	96.803	155.789	VT 214
	Marshfield	104.185	167.670	VT 215
		105.322	169.499	VT 232
Caledonia	Danville	113.526	182.702	VT 15
		119.191	191.819	VT 2B
	St. Johnsbury	122.932	197.840	I-91 / TRUCK US 2	Exit 21 (I-91)
		123.541	198.820	VT 2B
		124.530	200.412	US 5 south	South end of US 2 / US 5 overlap
		124.644	200.595	US 5 north	North end of US 2 / US 5 overlap
		127.592	205.339	TRUCK US 2 / VT 18
Essex	Guildhall	151.502	243.819	VT 102
		151.604	243.983	US 2	New Hampshire state line
Concurrency terminus •      Closed •      Unopened

See also [edit]

• U.S. Route 2 Business (Montpelier, Vermont)
• U.S. Route 2 Truck (St. Johnsbury, Vermont)

References [edit]

U.S. Route 2
Previous state: Terminus	New York and Vermont	Next state: New Hampshire

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