Exit numbers on many highways in Massachusetts will be changing in the near future. The shift from set exit numbers to those reflecting mile markers on a given highway is being made in order to meet federal requirements.
Jonathan Gulliver is the highway administrator for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. He said small markers that show the old exit numbers will be placed on highway signs to help with any confusion.
Gulliver said there is an advantage to the new system, which he said is used by most other states.
"Let's, just as an example, say that you need to get off at exit 115, and you're at exit 99, you know that you have 16 miles to go before you get to your exit," Gulliver said. "We've had a lot of meetings with the mapping companies in advance, and it's going to be pretty close to real time."
For motorists who use GPS apps or units to help them with directions, Gulliver said he expects the new exit numbers to be updated quickly.
"We've had a lot of meetings with the mapping companies in advance, and it's going to be pretty close to real time," Gulliver said. "As these signs are changed over, we're going to be reporting to them which ones are now the new exit numbers. They'll be updating their systems."
Not all interstate highways will undergo the change. I-291 and I-391 in Hampden County will keep current numbers. MassDOT said that's because the roadways are relatively short — and in the case of I-291, the exits are roughly a mile apart.
A federal grant will cover 90% of the nearly $3 million project.
Gulliver said changeover is expected to begin in western Massachusetts in the next few months.