VT/NY Roads - VT 279/NY 915G
VT 279 and NY 915G
Originally, VT 279 was a much shorter connector from US 7 to the next exit west, VT 67A, and exited itself at freeway stubs. The roadway was aptly known as the VT 67A Connector, and was signed as just plain VT 67A. So for many years, 67A went West, East, North, and South all at once!
EB on what was still VT 67A Connector at its end in 2003. This original signage still marked the eastern end of VT 279 until 2007.
VT 279 construction photos
Photos from the 11/12/11 Bennington Road Meet
What was a ghost interchange at US 7 for thirty years has finally been built out. A couple of ramps have been modified, and the concept of a VT 9 and US 7 bypass around Bennington is in the process of coming to fruition. The once-proposed interchange basically looks like a double-trumpet with the loops touching and the outer ramps connected, so that you could exit future (bypass) US 7 NB onto VT 279 WB and then re-enter US 7. Also, there's a C-D road along future US 7 SB that collects the VT 279 onramp and distributes the current US 7 offramp into Bennington; right now, mainline traffic uses the C-D road and exits. There will be a welcome center positioned between the connected trumpet ramps and the inner loops, which caused the inner trumpet loops to be made smaller and new ramps to be added to the south side of the interchange (Welcome Center to US 7 NB and US 7 SB to Welcome Center). What made that possible is that all of the ramps (paved and unpaved) have had very generous curves, so the entire interchange is quite spread out. The new road narrows from four lanes to two at the next overpass to the east, East Rd. Current US 7 south of the interchange has a good chance of becoming Business US 7 or an extension of VT 7A when the bypass is finally completed all the way around Bennington; the first stage only completed it to VT 9, so it is numbered as part of VT 279 for now.
The button copy is still intact on the left sign, even though the downtown destination has now been crammed into the bottom of the sign on the left. I would think it's only a matter of time and further construction before these signs disappear for good, very unfortunately.
Onto VT 67A
Into Bennington
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