CT 58 History
Commissioned in 1932 from the old State Highway 124, Route 58 originally followed today's Route 302 and Route 53 into Danbury Center (see portion of 1934 state map). Some maps showed Route 34 paired with Route 58 here.
The portion of Route 58 in Redding (the Bethel - Bridgeport Road) was constructed from 1918 to 1921.
When US 202 was commissioned in 1935, Route 58 was shortened to where it ends now in Bethel. US 202 in the area is now Route 302.
A short Route 58 freeway
In the 1960s, the state planned a 5-mile freeway linking downtown Bethel and Danbury with Interstate 84. A 1961 planning document calls it Route 58, but the more detailed planning studies don't assign a number.
For more information, see: Danbury - Bethel Connector.
8-ramp Merritt Parkway interchange modernized
Route 58 used to have a full cloverleaf with the Merritt Parkway (Route 15): all eight ramps, albeit poorly formed, with side streets intersecting the ramps.
In the late 1990s, for safety reasons, the state revised this 1930s-era interchange with a conventional four-ramp design.
National Scenic Byway Proposed
In 1990, the United States Congress called for a study of possible scenic roads on a national scale. The Merritt Parkway was on the list, and Route 169, a portion of US 7, and 13 miles of Route 58, from Bethel to Easton.
Route 58 did not make the cut, though a 3.14-mile segment, from the Fairfield/Easton Town line north to Freeborn Road, is a state scenic road.
CT 58 More...
Pinstripes to the left, as you drive northbound
Major league baseball defines specific territories for each team - usually a collection of city or county boundaries. (Some cities, like Chicago, are shared between AL and NL teams.) The New York Yankees territory, which extends into western Connecticut, is defined by two highways: in the state, it's south of I-84 and west of Route 58.
This fact came into play in 2004 when a Massachusetts developer announced his intent to relocate the Montreal Expos to Connecticut. The New York teams' reserved area meant Bridgeport and Danbury would be ruled out.
Official team territories do not necessarily extend as far as the fan base. Although Connecticut fan loyalty is divided between the Yankees and Red Sox, the official Boston territory does not overlap the Nutmeg State at all.
