Interstate 495 (Massachusetts)

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Interstate 495
Blue Star Memorial Highway
I-495 highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of I-95
Maintained by MassDOT
Length	121.56 mi[1] (195.63 km)
Existed	1957–present
NHS	Entire route
Major junctions
South end	I-195 / Route 25 in Wareham
Major intersections	US 44 in Middleborough Route 24 in Bridgewater I-95 in Foxborough US 1 in Plainville I-90 / Mass Pike at the Hopkinton–Westborough line Route 9 in Westborough US 20 in Marlborough I-290 / Route 85 Connector in Marlborough Route 2 in Littleton US 3 / Lowell Connector in Chelmsford/Lowell I-93 in Andover
North end	I-95 in Salisbury
Location
Country	United States
State	Massachusetts
Counties	Plymouth, Bristol, Norfolk, Worcester, Middlesex, Essex
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future Massachusetts State Highway System Interstate US State
← I-395 → I-695

Interstate 495 (I-495) is an auxiliary route of I-95 in the US state of Massachusetts, maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). Spanning 121.56 miles (195.63 km), it is the second-longest auxiliary route in the Interstate Highway System, being roughly 11 miles (18 km) shorter than I-476 in Pennsylvania.^[2]

Serving as one of two beltways (the other being Route 128) that forms a semicircle around Boston, and being the "outer" beltway, I-495 has its northern terminus in Salisbury, where it splits from I-95. Its route forms an arc with an approximately 30-mile (48 km) radius around the city and intersects seven additional radial expressways: I-93, US Route 3 (US 3), Route 2, I-290, I-90 (Massachusetts Turnpike), Route 24, and I-95 once more. I-495 has its southern terminus in Wareham, at the meeting of I-195 and Route 25. Originally, the stretch from Route 24 to I-195 was signed as Route 25, that status now only begins east of I-195.

I-495 and areas to its immediate east are often regarded as the inner ring of Greater Boston. The freeway's northern segment parallels the New Hampshire border, at one point coming as close as 400 feet (120 m) to the boundary, and its southern end is roughly 10 miles (16 km) north of Cape Cod. West of I-495 is the Worcester area and Central Massachusetts. I-495 is a heavily traveled route serving communities in Plymouth, Bristol, Norfolk, Worcester, Essex, and Middlesex counties.