In the Pioneer Valley Region congestion is relative to the to the commuter’s daily expectation on how long it should take to navigate the transportation system. The Pioneer Valley Region may not have congestion comparable to the Boston or other major urban areas, but the impacts of congestion on the region are real and impact both the commerce and the residents of the region. Congestion is defined as the delay caused to by the number of users on the transportation system at a given time. When the number of user’s exceed the capacity of the system, the results are defined as congestion. Typically, in western Massachusetts congestion is experienced during the morning and evening Peak hours, also known as rush hour. To measure congestion, PVPC has access to the Regional Integrated Transportation Information System (RITIS) data sets. Through a MassDOT contract all Regional Planning Agencies (RPA) have access to the Probe Data Analytics suite. This suite of programs provides RPA’s with access to Realtime as well as archived data for the Interstate network as well as the National Highway System (NHS). For additional information on Congestion in the Pioneer Valley Region please see Chapter 8 of the 2024 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP).
2022 Calendar Year Top Congestion Locations
Congestion Analysis
Springfield – I-91 Northbound @ Exit 8
Hadley – Route 9 @ Route 116
Westfield – Friendly’s Way / Industrial Park Road @ I-90 Exit 41