VT 117 connects the city of Essex Junction with Jericho in central Chittenden County.

VT 117 heads east through the Downtown Essex Junction Commercial Historic District along two-lane Maple Street, which has a grade crossing of the New England Central Railroad line that carries Amtrak.

After leaving the village, the highway's name changes to River Road, it begins to parallel the Winooski River, and meets the eastern end of VT 289 (Chittenden County Circumferential Highway) at a pair of widely spaced ramps just west of Alder Brook.

VT 117 follows the river southeast through the town of Jericho, where the route passes the Martin Chittenden House before crossing Mill Brook.

[2] The Vermont Agency of Transportation maintains the remainder of the highway through Essex, Jericho, and Richmond.