Interstate 495 (Delaware)

Interstate 495
Interstate 495
Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway
	I-495 highlighted in red
Route information
	Auxiliary route of I-95
	Maintained by DelDOT
Length	11.47 mi (18.46 km)
Existed	1962–present
History	Completed in 1977
NHS	Entire route
Major junctions
South end	I-95 / I-295 in Newport
	; US 13 / US 13 Bus. in Minquadale; DE 9A in Wilmington; US 13 / DE 3 in Edgemoor; US 13 in Claymont;
North end	I-95 at the Pennsylvania state line
Location
Country	United States
State	Delaware
Counties	New Castle
Highway system
	Interstate Highway System; Main; Auxiliary; Suffixed; Business; Future; Delaware State Route System; List; Byways;

Interstate 495 (I-495) is an 11.47-mile-long (18.46 km) auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US state of Delaware. The highway, named the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway, serves as a six-lane bypass of I-95 around the city of Wilmington. I-495 begins at an interchange with I-95 and I-295 near Newport to the southwest of Wilmington. From here, the road heads east to the Port of Wilmington, where it turns northeast and crosses the Christina River as it heads to the east of downtown Wilmington. Upon reaching Edgemoor, I-495 runs between the Delaware River to the east and U.S. Route 13 (US 13) to the west, continuing to Claymont. In Claymont, I-495 turns north and merges into northbound I-95 at an interchange with Delaware Route 92 (DE 92) just south of the Pennsylvania state line.

Plans for a bypass of Wilmington to the east date back to 1948 and were incorporated into the Interstate Highway System in 1956. This Interstate bypass was numbered I-495 in the 1960s. Construction of I-495 took place during the course of the 1970s, with the entire length of the highway completed and opened to traffic in 1977. Between 1978 and 1980, I-95 was designated along the I-495 alignment while the South Wilmington Viaduct along I-95 was reconstructed; during this time the route through Wilmington was known as I-895. The US 13/DE 3 interchange in Edgemoor opened in 1988. In 2014, the bridge over the Christina River was closed due to tilting support columns until repairs were completed.

^ Starks, Edward (January 27, 2022). "Table 2: Auxiliary Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways". FHWA Route Log and Finder List. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
^ Staff (2018). "Traffic Count and Mileage Report: Interstate, Delaware, and US Routes" (PDF). Delaware Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
^ Cite error: The named reference 1962 report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference 1977 report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[1] Starks, Edward (January 27, 2022). "Table 2: Auxiliary Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways". FHWA Route Log and Finder List. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved January 10, 2023.

[DelDOT-2] Staff (2018). "Traffic Count and Mileage Report: Interstate, Delaware, and US Routes" (PDF). Delaware Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 29, 2020.

[1962_report-3] Cite error: The named reference 1962 report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[1977_report-4] Cite error: The named reference 1977 report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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