Interstate 95 is a fact of life on the East Coast. Drivers passing through the Northeast can barely avoid Connecticut's 112-mile portion of the highway, which is one of the most congested in any I-95 state and has among the highest densities of exits.

The Day examined I-95's problems and challenges using 19 years of state Department of Transportation accident data incorporating state police accident reports. Analysis of the data showed that Connecticut's portion of the highway was severely congested. The highway was originally designed to accommodate up to 50,000 vehicles a day, but in some parts now carries 150,000.

The Day also spoke to survivors of some of the most deadly crashes on the highway and a grieving husband whose wife was killed Nov. 2, 2007, when a northbound tanker driver lost control of his rig and crossed into the southbound lanes near Exits 74 and 75 in East Lyme.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has proposed a 30-year, $100 billion plan to overhaul the highway by increasing driving space and decreasing the number of drivers.

-- Izaskun E. Larrañeta