diff --git a/router/java/src/net/i2p/router/tunnel/pool/BuildHandler.java b/router/java/src/net/i2p/router/tunnel/pool/BuildHandler.java
index 0583c73b1..1d0f4f54c 100644
--- a/router/java/src/net/i2p/router/tunnel/pool/BuildHandler.java
+++ b/router/java/src/net/i2p/router/tunnel/pool/BuildHandler.java
@@ -65,6 +65,7 @@ class BuildHandler {
 
         _context.statManager().createRateStat("tunnel.rejectOverloaded", "How long we had to wait before processing the request (when it was rejected)", "Tunnels", new long[] { 60*1000, 10*60*1000 });
         _context.statManager().createRateStat("tunnel.acceptLoad", "Delay before processing the accepted request", "Tunnels", new long[] { 60*1000, 10*60*1000 });
+        _context.statManager().createRateStat("tunnel.dropConnLimits", "Drop instead of reject due to conn limits", "Tunnels", new long[] { 60*1000, 10*60*1000 });
         _context.statManager().createRateStat("tunnel.dropLoad", "How long we had to wait before finally giving up on an inbound request (period is queue count)?", "Tunnels", new long[] { 60*1000, 10*60*1000 });
         _context.statManager().createRateStat("tunnel.dropLoadDelay", "How long we had to wait before finally giving up on an inbound request?", "Tunnels", new long[] { 60*1000, 10*60*1000 });
         _context.statManager().createRateStat("tunnel.dropLoadBacklog", "How many requests were pending when they were so lagged that we had to drop a new inbound request??", "Tunnels", new long[] { 60*1000, 10*60*1000 });
@@ -466,7 +467,6 @@ class BuildHandler {
         return 0;
     }
     
-    private static final String PROP_REJECT_NONPARTICIPANT = "router.participantOnly";
     private void handleReq(RouterInfo nextPeerInfo, BuildMessageState state, BuildRequestRecord req, Hash nextPeer) {
         long ourId = req.readReceiveTunnelId();
         long nextId = req.readNextTunnelId();
@@ -569,6 +569,17 @@ class BuildHandler {
                                                      (isOutEnd ? "outbound endpoint" : isInGW ? "inbound gw" : "participant"));
         }
 
+        // Connection congestion control:
+        // If we rejected the request, are near our conn limits, and aren't connected to the next hop,
+        // just drop it.
+        if (response != 0 &&
+            (! _context.routerHash().equals(nextPeer)) &&
+            (! _context.commSystem().haveOutboundCapacity()) &&
+            (! _context.commSystem().isEstablished(nextPeer))) {
+            _context.statManager().addRateData("tunnel.dropConnLimits", 1, 0);
+            return;
+        }
+
         BuildResponseRecord resp = new BuildResponseRecord();
         byte reply[] = resp.create(_context, response, req.readReplyKey(), req.readReplyIV(), state.msg.getUniqueId());
         for (int j = 0; j < TunnelBuildMessage.RECORD_COUNT; j++) {