The year 1968 saw the beginning of the first major expansion of the Turnpike after the completion of the Boston extension in 1965. While the original design of the roadway called for an eight-lane expressway along the majority of the route, it was only constructed as a four-lane roadway along most of its length until it reached the junction of Route 9 in Framingham where the roadway expanded to six lanes. Starting in 1968 the highway from the Interstate 84 interchange in Sturbridge to Route 9 was widened from its original four lanes to six; that widening project was completed around 1971.