MA 2
MA 2 Information: Western terminus is at the NY State Line in Williamstown, MA. The eastern terminus is at the Public Garden in Boston.
History/Facts: Route 2 used to be NE 7 from Boston to Albany, but was renumbered when US routes came along (as they wanted to use US 7 for the NE 4 corridor). Wherever there is a 2A, it used to be MA 2 before it was bypassed in some way. The one in our area is in Greenfield.
Photos: Eastbound / Westbound
Westbound: The Berkshires/Franklin County
The following 25 pics are courtesy of Greg. An old ramp.
Exit 22.
A general shot.
Johnny Appleseed trail.
A closed parking area. The westbound on ehas yet to open, although eastbound has.
Exit 21 and a rock cut.
Templeton overpass.
Exit 21.
Another road panorama.
Exit 20.
Exit what? heh.
Exit 20.
General road shot after exit 20.
Another road view. Little traffic in this area.
Exit 19.
Nearing the end of the four lane highway.
Exit 19.
Exit 18 warning signage.
Weird Exit 18 sign.
Widening work going on.
Exit 17.
Wide right of way, which they will be using to expand the roadway.
Exit 17.
Orange distance.
Good view of the rock cut and widening work.
The following 51 pics are courtesy of Arrow. This is on the MA 2 Super 2 in Athol after the four-laning ends.
Old button copy sign with New Jersey style shield on black background.
Entering Orange, Mass.
Whoops. MA 202 error on this old button copy sign. Note the clearing - the road is able to be four-laned if necessary.
A little more modern sign.
Iffy looking 102 shield.
Indeed, welcome.
Looks like it's mising some border there.
Distance and clearing for four-laning.
Exit to Orange.
Exit.
Entering Erving.
The end of the Super 2.
Building a bypass of the curve near the Erving factory. The original curve is deadly and this new cutoff will dramatically improve the road.
Said factory on the curve.
The new road as seen from the old road.
Downtown Erving. The road is new enough to have cat's eyes, but looks incredibly beat up.
More Series E.
Erving road.
MA 63 connects from underneath MA 2.
Erving.
The French King Bridge, in Gill.
View of the Connecticut River from the FKB.
Gill.
We are technically already in Gill, but eh.
Approaching the 2 and 2A split in Greenfield.
More Greenfield Signage.
On the short freeway section approaching I-91. Incredibly old button copy with incredibly old shields.
This is new and still goofy.
Entering the Y interchange on MA 2 as it multiplexes with I-91 in Greenfield.
Entering the Y.
More Y.
On the Exit 26 rotary. Mass DPW I-91 shield with Series C font.
More Rotary signage.
The Shelburne Center turnoff in Shelburne.
The start of the Shelburne Falls 2A.
Start of the MA 112 multiplex in Shelburne.
112, like 67 earlier, connects via circling underneath MA 2.
Said turnoff.
More Series F.
The Spur MA 8A that we saw back in Windsor junctions here in Charlemont.
Charlemont, MA. Another sleepy town on the Mohawk trail.
More 8A in Charlemont.
The actual turn.
General Charlemont road shot as it winds next to the Cold river.
Entering Florida, MA.
Mountain summit looking westward in Florida.
Same, but looking east.
One of several warnings. MA 2 is really the last highway in the state that would remind you of the old state roads in black and white movies; with the hairpin mountain turns and steep grades.
A rare BGS on a surface road; fairly new, as the signs that used to be here were old, self lit structures. They don't exist on either the eastbound or Westbound side anymore.
Coming west from the hairpin. Oldish and looks like Series E.
Oldish but more in line with MA font.
Where 2 and 8 meet heading west. These are more like Series E.
You can see the difference between E and D, respectively.
Oldish sign, and an oddball. That sign says "Veterans organizations." What a tacky takeoff of a US shield.
More oldish 2 and 8, and a town erected sign.
A directional.
This is the viaduct that carries MA 2 over MA 8. I think at one point this used to be an at-grade intersection, but I'm not sure. The bridge looks relatively new.
Done? Head Eastbound or Return home.
All photographs and original info ©2004/2005 Dan Vincent unless otherwise noted.