If you’ve ever sat in bumper-to-bumper traffic near the George Washington Bridge or cruised through the pine barrens of Georgia, you know I-95 isn't just a road. It’s a beast. Most people asking how long is Route 95 are usually looking for a simple number to plug into a GPS or a trivia night, but the answer depends on whether you're talking about the physical asphalt or the time it takes to survive the "East Coast Gauntlet."
The official length of Interstate 95 is 1,924 miles.
That makes it the longest north-south interstate in the United States. It connects the Canadian border in Houlton, Maine, all the way down to the humid, palm-lined streets of Miami, Florida. It’s a massive stretch of concrete that crosses through 15 different states. Honestly, it’s impressive how one road can feel so different depending on which state line you just crossed. One minute you're seeing moose crossing signs in the North Woods, and the next you’re dodging aggressive commuters in Northern Virginia.
Breaking Down the Mileage State by State
You can’t just look at the 1,924-mile total and understand the scale of this thing. Some states barely have a "blink and you'll miss it" section of I-95, while others feel like they go on for an eternity.
Florida wins the "long haul" award. If you're driving north from Miami, you’ll be in Florida for roughly 382 miles. That’s nearly 20% of the entire route in just one state. On the flip side, Pennsylvania is barely a blip. You’re only on I-95 in PA for about 51 miles as you pass through Philadelphia. It's a weird contrast.
Maine is surprisingly huge, too. People forget that the top of the route is massive. You’ve got over 300 miles of I-95 in Maine alone. Most travelers give up and turn around at Portland, but the road keeps going way past that, deep into the woods until it literally hits a customs station at the border.
In between those extremes, you have the "Megalopolis" stretch. This is where the mileage feels much longer than it actually is. Crossing through Delaware only takes about 23 miles. That sounds like a breeze, right? Tell that to someone trying to cross the Delaware Memorial Bridge on a Friday afternoon in July. Those 23 miles can easily take two hours. This is why how long is Route 95 is such a loaded question. Physical distance and "time distance" are two very different things on the East Coast.
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Why the Route 95 Length Actually Changed Over Time
Here is a bit of nerd history that most people get wrong. For a long time, I-95 wasn't actually finished. There was a notorious "gap" in New Jersey that lasted for decades.
Basically, because of local opposition and environmental concerns back in the 60s and 70s, a section of I-95 in Central Jersey was never built as originally planned. For years, drivers had to exit the highway, hop on some local roads or the 295, and then find their way back onto the interstate. It was a mess. It wasn't until 2018—yes, that recently—that the PA Turnpike/I-95 Interchange Project finally closed the gap. This officially linked the two separate sections and finally made I-95 a continuous shot from Maine to Florida.
When that gap closed, the "official" mileage shifted slightly. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) keeps the records, but construction projects, realignments, and new interchanges can shave a mile off or add a mile on over the years.
The 15 States of I-95
If you’re planning the full trip, you’re hitting these spots in order (going North to South):
- Maine
- New Hampshire (only 16 miles!)
- Massachusetts
- Rhode Island
- Connecticut
- New York
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Delaware
- Maryland
- Virginia
- North Carolina
- South Carolina
- Georgia
- Florida
It’s the only interstate that hits that many states. None of the big east-west roads like I-80 or I-10 can claim that kind of state-hopping diversity.
The Logistics of Driving 1,924 Miles
Driving the full length of Route 95 isn't like driving across the desert on I-40. It’s high-stakes. You’re passing through some of the most densely populated areas on the planet.
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If you averaged 60 miles per hour—which is optimistic given the traffic in DC and New York—you’re looking at about 32 hours of pure driving time. Most people who do the "Snowbird" run from New England to Florida break it up into three days. Two days is possible if you have multiple drivers and a very high tolerance for fast-food coffee, but it's brutal.
One thing you have to account for is tolls. Route 95 is a cash cow for several states. From the Maine Turnpike down through the New Jersey Turnpike and the Fort McHenry Tunnel in Baltimore, the costs add up. If you don't have an E-ZPass, you’re going to have a bad time. In fact, some sections don't even take cash anymore; they just mail you a bill based on your license plate, which usually costs double.
Common Misconceptions About Route 95
A lot of people confuse I-95 with US Route 1. They are not the same thing.
US Route 1 is the historic "Atlantic Highway." It often runs parallel to I-95, and in some places, they even overlap, but US-1 is the old-school road with traffic lights, diners, and main streets. I-95 is the controlled-access interstate. If you’re asking how long is Route 95 because you want to see the sights, you might actually want to look at US-1 instead. But if you want to get from Boston to Savannah as fast as possible, 95 is your only real choice.
Another myth is that it ends in Key West. It doesn't. I-95 officially terminates in Miami at US-1. If you want to go all the way to Key West, you have to transition onto the Overseas Highway. It’s a beautiful drive, but it’s not part of the 1,924 miles of I-95.
Surprising Facts About the Road
There’s a legendary status to some of the stops along this route. You have "South of the Border" in Hamer, South Carolina. You’ll start seeing the billboards hundreds of miles away. It’s a kitschy, neon-soaked roadside attraction that has become a mandatory stop for anyone doing the full 1,924-mile trek. It's objectively weird, but it's part of the I-95 culture.
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Then there’s the "Mixing Bowl" in Springfield, Virginia. This is one of the most complex highway interchanges in the world. It’s where I-95, I-395, and I-495 all collide. If you hit this at 8:00 AM on a Tuesday, the physical length of the road doesn't matter anymore; you're living in a different dimension of time where minutes feel like hours.
Actionable Tips for Navigating the Full Length
If you are actually going to tackle a significant portion of these 1,924 miles, don't just wing it.
Timing is everything. Never, under any circumstances, try to pass through the I-95 corridor in Connecticut between 3:00 PM and 7:00 PM. The same goes for the stretch between Fredericksburg and Washington, D.C. It is statistically some of the worst traffic in the country. If you can time your drive to hit the big cities (NYC, Philly, DC) late at night or very early in the morning, you will save yourself hours of frustration.
Gas up strategically. Gas prices fluctuate wildly along the route. Generally, South Carolina and Virginia tend to have cheaper fuel than New York or Maryland. Use an app like GasBuddy to plan your stops so you aren't paying "turnpike prices" at a service plaza in Jersey when you could have saved 40 cents a gallon twenty miles away.
Download your maps. Even though you're on a major interstate, there are dead zones, particularly in Northern Maine and parts of the Carolina lowcountry. Having an offline version of your route on Google Maps is a lifesaver when the signal drops and you need to find an exit for food or a bathroom.
Check the tolls ahead of time. Use a toll calculator. If you’re driving a rental car, be careful with their built-in toll programs; they often charge a daily "convenience fee" that ends up costing more than the tolls themselves. Bringing your own E-ZPass (which works in almost every state on the route now) is the smartest move you can make.
The 1,924 miles of Route 95 represent more than just a commute. It’s a cross-section of American life, from the rocky coast of the Atlantic North to the tropical humidity of the South. Understanding the length is just the first step; surviving the drive is the real achievement.