diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/connection/shared_connection_stats.c b/src/backend/distributed/connection/shared_connection_stats.c
index 1c82f3889..649f2e9b5 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/connection/shared_connection_stats.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/connection/shared_connection_stats.c
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@
 #include "access/htup_details.h"
 #include "catalog/pg_authid.h"
 #include "commands/dbcommands.h"
+#include "distributed/backend_data.h"
 #include "distributed/cancel_utils.h"
 #include "distributed/connection_management.h"
 #include "distributed/listutils.h"
@@ -97,6 +98,14 @@ typedef struct SharedConnStatsHashEntry
  */
 int MaxSharedPoolSize = 0;
 
+/*
+ * Controlled via a GUC, never access directly, use GetLocalSharedPoolSize().
+ *  "0" means adjust LocalSharedPoolSize automatically by using MaxConnections.
+ * "-1" means do not use any remote connections for local tasks
+ * Anything else means use that number
+ */
+int LocalSharedPoolSize = 0;
+
 
 /* the following two structs are used for accessing shared memory */
 static HTAB *SharedConnStatsHash = NULL;
@@ -205,6 +214,25 @@ GetMaxSharedPoolSize(void)
 }
 
 
+/*
+ * GetLocalSharedPoolSize is a wrapper around LocalSharedPoolSize which is
+ * controlled via a GUC.
+ *  "0" means adjust MaxSharedPoolSize automatically by using MaxConnections
+ * "-1" means do not use any remote connections for local tasks
+ * Anything else means use that number
+ */
+int
+GetLocalSharedPoolSize(void)
+{
+	if (LocalSharedPoolSize == ADJUST_POOLSIZE_AUTOMATICALLY)
+	{
+		return MaxConnections * 0.5;
+	}
+
+	return LocalSharedPoolSize;
+}
+
+
 /*
  * WaitLoopForSharedConnection tries to increment the shared connection
  * counter for the given hostname/port and the current database in
@@ -270,6 +298,32 @@ TryToIncrementSharedConnectionCounter(const char *hostname, int port)
 	connKey.port = port;
 	connKey.databaseOid = MyDatabaseId;
 
+	/*
+	 * Handle adaptive connection management for the local node slightly different
+	 * as local node can failover to local execution.
+	 */
+	bool connectionToLocalNode = false;
+	int activeBackendCount = 0;
+	WorkerNode *workerNode = FindWorkerNode(hostname, port);
+	if (workerNode)
+	{
+		connectionToLocalNode = (workerNode->groupId == GetLocalGroupId());
+		if (connectionToLocalNode &&
+			GetLocalSharedPoolSize() == DISABLE_REMOTE_CONNECTIONS_FOR_LOCAL_QUERIES)
+		{
+			/*
+			 * This early return is required as LocalNodeParallelExecutionFactor
+			 * is ignored for the first connection below. This check makes the
+			 * user experience is more accurate and also makes it easy for
+			 * having regression tests which emulates the local node adaptive
+			 * connection management.
+			 */
+			return false;
+		}
+
+		activeBackendCount = GetAllActiveClientBackendCount();
+	}
+
 	LockConnectionSharedMemory(LW_EXCLUSIVE);
 
 	/*
@@ -300,6 +354,34 @@ TryToIncrementSharedConnectionCounter(const char *hostname, int port)
 
 		counterIncremented = true;
 	}
+	else if (connectionToLocalNode)
+	{
+		/*
+		 * For local nodes, solely relying on citus.max_shared_pool_size or
+		 * max_connections might not be sufficient. The former gives us
+		 * a preview of the future (e.g., we let the new connections to establish,
+		 * but they are not established yet). The latter gives us the close to
+		 * precise view of the past (e.g., the active number of client backends).
+		 *
+		 * Overall, we want to limit both of the metrics. The former limit typically
+		 * kicks in under regular loads, where the load of the database increases in
+		 * a reasonable pace. The latter limit typically kicks in when the database
+		 * is issued lots of concurrent sessions at the same time, such as benchmarks.
+		 */
+		if (activeBackendCount + 1 > GetLocalSharedPoolSize())
+		{
+			counterIncremented = false;
+		}
+		else if (connectionEntry->connectionCount + 1 > GetLocalSharedPoolSize())
+		{
+			counterIncremented = false;
+		}
+		else
+		{
+			connectionEntry->connectionCount++;
+			counterIncremented = true;
+		}
+	}
 	else if (connectionEntry->connectionCount + 1 > GetMaxSharedPoolSize())
 	{
 		/* there is no space left for this connection */
@@ -618,7 +700,7 @@ SharedConnectionStatsShmemInit(void)
  * optional connections.
  */
 int
-AdaptiveConnectionManagementFlag(int activeConnectionCount)
+AdaptiveConnectionManagementFlag(bool connectToLocalNode, int activeConnectionCount)
 {
 	if (UseConnectionPerPlacement())
 	{
@@ -633,6 +715,14 @@ AdaptiveConnectionManagementFlag(int activeConnectionCount)
 		 */
 		return 0;
 	}
+	else if (connectToLocalNode)
+	{
+		/*
+		 * Connection to local node is always optional because the executor is capable
+		 * of falling back to local execution.
+		 */
+		return OPTIONAL_CONNECTION;
+	}
 	else if (ShouldWaitForConnection(activeConnectionCount))
 	{
 		/*
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/executor/adaptive_executor.c b/src/backend/distributed/executor/adaptive_executor.c
index b36cf93ae..8ad9d7e11 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/executor/adaptive_executor.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/executor/adaptive_executor.c
@@ -298,6 +298,25 @@ typedef struct DistributedExecution
 } DistributedExecution;
 
 
+/*
+ * WorkerPoolFailureState indicates the current state of the
+ * pool.
+ */
+typedef enum WorkerPoolFailureState
+{
+	/* safe to continue execution*/
+	WORKER_POOL_NOT_FAILED,
+
+	/* if a pool fails, the execution fails */
+	WORKER_POOL_FAILED,
+
+	/*
+	 * The remote execution over the pool failed, but we failed over
+	 * to the local execution and still finish the execution.
+	 */
+	WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL
+} WorkerPoolFailureState;
+
 /*
  * WorkerPool represents a pool of sessions on the same worker.
  *
@@ -383,11 +402,17 @@ typedef struct WorkerPool
 	/* maximum number of connections we are allowed to open at once */
 	uint32 maxNewConnectionsPerCycle;
 
+	/*
+	 * Set to true if the pool is to local node. We use this value to
+	 * avoid re-calculating often.
+	 */
+	bool poolToLocalNode;
+
 	/*
 	 * This is only set in WorkerPoolFailed() function. Once a pool fails, we do not
 	 * use it anymore.
 	 */
-	bool failed;
+	WorkerPoolFailureState failureState;
 } WorkerPool;
 
 struct TaskPlacementExecution;
@@ -457,7 +482,8 @@ typedef enum TaskExecutionState
 {
 	TASK_EXECUTION_NOT_FINISHED,
 	TASK_EXECUTION_FINISHED,
-	TASK_EXECUTION_FAILED
+	TASK_EXECUTION_FAILED,
+	TASK_EXECUTION_FAILOVER_TO_LOCAL_EXECUTION
 } TaskExecutionState;
 
 /*
@@ -515,6 +541,7 @@ typedef enum TaskPlacementExecutionState
 	PLACEMENT_EXECUTION_READY,
 	PLACEMENT_EXECUTION_RUNNING,
 	PLACEMENT_EXECUTION_FINISHED,
+	PLACEMENT_EXECUTION_FAILOVER_TO_LOCAL_EXECUTION,
 	PLACEMENT_EXECUTION_FAILED
 } TaskPlacementExecutionState;
 
@@ -582,7 +609,6 @@ static void StartDistributedExecution(DistributedExecution *execution);
 static void RunLocalExecution(CitusScanState *scanState, DistributedExecution *execution);
 static void RunDistributedExecution(DistributedExecution *execution);
 static void SequentialRunDistributedExecution(DistributedExecution *execution);
-
 static void FinishDistributedExecution(DistributedExecution *execution);
 static void CleanUpSessions(DistributedExecution *execution);
 
@@ -634,6 +660,8 @@ static void PlacementExecutionDone(TaskPlacementExecution *placementExecution,
 								   bool succeeded);
 static void ScheduleNextPlacementExecution(TaskPlacementExecution *placementExecution,
 										   bool succeeded);
+static bool CanFailoverPlacementExecutionToLocalExecution(TaskPlacementExecution *
+														  placementExecution);
 static bool ShouldMarkPlacementsInvalidOnFailure(DistributedExecution *execution);
 static void PlacementExecutionReady(TaskPlacementExecution *placementExecution);
 static TaskExecutionState TaskExecutionStateMachine(ShardCommandExecution *
@@ -1080,7 +1108,11 @@ CreateDistributedExecution(RowModifyLevel modLevel, List *taskList,
 	}
 	else
 	{
-		execution->remoteTaskList = execution->remoteAndLocalTaskList;
+		/*
+		 * Get a shallow copy of the list as we rely on remoteAndLocalTaskList
+		 * across the execution.
+		 */
+		execution->remoteTaskList = list_copy(execution->remoteAndLocalTaskList);
 	}
 
 	execution->totalTaskCount = list_length(execution->remoteTaskList);
@@ -1630,7 +1662,6 @@ CleanUpSessions(DistributedExecution *execution)
 			 * changing any states in the ConnectionStateMachine.
 			 *
 			 */
-
 			CloseConnection(connection);
 		}
 		else if (connection->connectionState == MULTI_CONNECTION_CONNECTED)
@@ -1708,8 +1739,6 @@ AssignTasksToConnectionsOrWorkerPool(DistributedExecution *execution)
 	RowModifyLevel modLevel = execution->modLevel;
 	List *taskList = execution->remoteTaskList;
 
-	int32 localGroupId = GetLocalGroupId();
-
 	Task *task = NULL;
 	foreach_ptr(task, taskList)
 	{
@@ -1849,11 +1878,6 @@ AssignTasksToConnectionsOrWorkerPool(DistributedExecution *execution)
 				 */
 				placementExecutionReady = false;
 			}
-
-			if (taskPlacement->groupId == localGroupId)
-			{
-				SetLocalExecutionStatus(LOCAL_EXECUTION_DISABLED);
-			}
 		}
 	}
 
@@ -2020,6 +2044,13 @@ FindOrCreateWorkerPool(DistributedExecution *execution, char *nodeName, int node
 	workerPool->nodeName = pstrdup(nodeName);
 	workerPool->nodePort = nodePort;
 
+	WorkerNode *workerNode = FindWorkerNode(nodeName, nodePort);
+	if (workerNode)
+	{
+		workerPool->poolToLocalNode =
+			workerNode->groupId == GetLocalGroupId();
+	}
+
 	/* "open" connections aggressively when there are cached connections */
 	int nodeConnectionCount = MaxCachedConnectionsPerWorker;
 	workerPool->maxNewConnectionsPerCycle = Max(1, nodeConnectionCount);
@@ -2142,13 +2173,11 @@ SequentialRunDistributedExecution(DistributedExecution *execution)
 	 * executions, so make sure to set it.
 	 */
 	MultiShardConnectionType = SEQUENTIAL_CONNECTION;
-
 	Task *taskToExecute = NULL;
 	foreach_ptr(taskToExecute, taskList)
 	{
-		/* execute each task one by one */
 		execution->remoteAndLocalTaskList = list_make1(taskToExecute);
-		execution->remoteTaskList = execution->remoteAndLocalTaskList;
+		execution->remoteTaskList = list_make1(taskToExecute);
 		execution->totalTaskCount = 1;
 		execution->unfinishedTaskCount = 1;
 
@@ -2201,15 +2230,21 @@ RunDistributedExecution(DistributedExecution *execution)
 
 		while (execution->unfinishedTaskCount > 0 && !cancellationReceived)
 		{
-			long timeout = NextEventTimeout(execution);
-
 			WorkerPool *workerPool = NULL;
 			foreach_ptr(workerPool, execution->workerList)
 			{
 				ManageWorkerPool(workerPool);
 			}
 
-			if (execution->rebuildWaitEventSet)
+			if (execution->remoteTaskList == NIL)
+			{
+				/*
+				 * All the tasks are failed over to the local execution, no need
+				 * to wait for any connection activity.
+				 */
+				continue;
+			}
+			else if (execution->rebuildWaitEventSet)
 			{
 				if (events != NULL)
 				{
@@ -2221,7 +2256,6 @@ RunDistributedExecution(DistributedExecution *execution)
 					events = NULL;
 				}
 				eventSetSize = RebuildWaitEventSet(execution);
-
 				events = palloc0(eventSetSize * sizeof(WaitEvent));
 			}
 			else if (execution->waitFlagsChanged)
@@ -2231,6 +2265,7 @@ RunDistributedExecution(DistributedExecution *execution)
 			}
 
 			/* wait for I/O events */
+			long timeout = NextEventTimeout(execution);
 			int eventCount = WaitEventSetWait(execution->waitEventSet, timeout, events,
 											  eventSetSize, WAIT_EVENT_CLIENT_READ);
 			ProcessWaitEvents(execution, events, eventCount, &cancellationReceived);
@@ -2369,7 +2404,6 @@ ManageWorkerPool(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 	}
 
 	int newConnectionCount = CalculateNewConnectionCount(workerPool);
-
 	if (newConnectionCount <= 0)
 	{
 		return;
@@ -2377,6 +2411,46 @@ ManageWorkerPool(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 
 	OpenNewConnections(workerPool, newConnectionCount, execution->transactionProperties);
 
+	/*
+	 * Cannot establish new connections to the local host, most probably because the
+	 * local node cannot accept new connections (e.g., hit max_connections). Switch
+	 * the tasks to the local execution.
+	 *
+	 * We prefer initiatedConnectionCount over the new connection establishments happen
+	 * in this iteration via OpenNewConnections(). The reason is that it is expected for
+	 * OpenNewConnections() to not open any new connections as long as the connections
+	 * are optional (e.g., the second or later connections in the pool). But, for
+	 * initiatedConnectionCount to be zero, the connection to the local pool should have
+	 * been failed.
+	 */
+	int initiatedConnectionCount = list_length(workerPool->sessionList);
+	if (initiatedConnectionCount == 0)
+	{
+		/*
+		 * Only the pools to the local node are allowed to have optional
+		 * connections for the first connection. Hence, initiatedConnectionCount
+		 * could only be zero for poolToLocalNode. For other pools, the connection
+		 * manager would wait until it gets at least one connection.
+		 */
+		Assert(workerPool->poolToLocalNode);
+
+		WorkerPoolFailed(workerPool);
+
+		if (execution->failed)
+		{
+			ereport(ERROR, (errcode(ERRCODE_CONNECTION_FAILURE),
+							errmsg(
+								"could not establish any connections to the node %s:%d "
+								"when local execution is also disabled.",
+								workerPool->nodeName,
+								workerPool->nodePort),
+							errhint("Enable local execution via SET "
+									"citus.enable_local_execution TO true;")));
+		}
+
+		return;
+	}
+
 	INSTR_TIME_SET_CURRENT(workerPool->lastConnectionOpenTime);
 	execution->rebuildWaitEventSet = true;
 }
@@ -2389,7 +2463,8 @@ ManageWorkerPool(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 static bool
 HasAnyConnectionFailure(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 {
-	if (workerPool->failed)
+	if (workerPool->failureState == WORKER_POOL_FAILED ||
+		workerPool->failureState == WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL)
 	{
 		/* connection pool failed */
 		return true;
@@ -2520,7 +2595,6 @@ CalculateNewConnectionCount(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 		 * than the target pool size.
 		 */
 		newConnectionCount = Min(newConnectionsForReadyTasks, maxNewConnectionCount);
-
 		if (newConnectionCount > 0)
 		{
 			/* increase the open rate every cycle (like TCP slow start) */
@@ -2557,7 +2631,8 @@ OpenNewConnections(WorkerPool *workerPool, int newConnectionCount,
 		 * throttle connections if citus.max_shared_pool_size reached)
 		 */
 		int adaptiveConnectionManagementFlag =
-			AdaptiveConnectionManagementFlag(list_length(workerPool->sessionList));
+			AdaptiveConnectionManagementFlag(workerPool->poolToLocalNode,
+											 list_length(workerPool->sessionList));
 		connectionFlags |= adaptiveConnectionManagementFlag;
 
 		/* open a new connection to the worker */
@@ -2660,13 +2735,24 @@ CheckConnectionTimeout(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 			 */
 			WorkerPoolFailed(workerPool);
 
-			/*
-			 * The enforcement is not always erroring out. For example, if a SELECT task
-			 * has two different placements, we'd warn the user, fail the pool and continue
-			 * with the next placement.
-			 */
-			if (execution->transactionProperties->errorOnAnyFailure || execution->failed)
+			if (workerPool->failureState == WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL)
 			{
+				/*
+				 *
+				 * When the pool is failed over to local execution, warning
+				 * the user just creates chatter as the executor is capable of
+				 * finishing the execution.
+				 */
+				logLevel = DEBUG1;
+			}
+			else if (execution->transactionProperties->errorOnAnyFailure ||
+					 execution->failed)
+			{
+				/*
+				 * The enforcement is not always erroring out. For example, if a SELECT task
+				 * has two different placements, we'd warn the user, fail the pool and continue
+				 * with the next placement.
+				 */
 				logLevel = ERROR;
 			}
 
@@ -2758,7 +2844,7 @@ NextEventTimeout(DistributedExecution *execution)
 	WorkerPool *workerPool = NULL;
 	foreach_ptr(workerPool, execution->workerList)
 	{
-		if (workerPool->failed)
+		if (workerPool->failureState == WORKER_POOL_FAILED)
 		{
 			/* worker pool may have already timed out */
 			continue;
@@ -2974,14 +3060,28 @@ ConnectionStateMachine(WorkerSession *session)
 				 * or WorkerPoolFailed.
 				 */
 				if (execution->failed ||
-					execution->transactionProperties->errorOnAnyFailure)
+					(execution->transactionProperties->errorOnAnyFailure &&
+					 workerPool->failureState != WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL))
 				{
 					/* a task has failed due to this connection failure */
 					ReportConnectionError(connection, ERROR);
 				}
+				else if (workerPool->activeConnectionCount > 0 ||
+						 workerPool->failureState == WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL)
+				{
+					/*
+					 * We already have active connection(s) to the node, and the
+					 * executor is capable of using those connections to successfully
+					 * finish the execution. So, there is not much value in warning
+					 * the user.
+					 *
+					 * Similarly when the pool is failed over to local execution, warning
+					 * the user just creates chatter.
+					 */
+					ReportConnectionError(connection, DEBUG1);
+				}
 				else
 				{
-					/* can continue with the remaining nodes */
 					ReportConnectionError(connection, WARNING);
 				}
 
@@ -3558,6 +3658,17 @@ StartPlacementExecutionOnSession(TaskPlacementExecution *placementExecution,
 	if (querySent)
 	{
 		session->commandsSent++;
+
+		if (workerPool->poolToLocalNode)
+		{
+			/*
+			 * As we started remote execution to the local node,
+			 * we cannot switch back to local execution as that
+			 * would cause self-deadlocks and breaking
+			 * read-your-own-writes consistency.
+			 */
+			SetLocalExecutionStatus(LOCAL_EXECUTION_DISABLED);
+		}
 	}
 
 	return querySent;
@@ -4004,7 +4115,8 @@ WorkerPoolFailed(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 	 * A pool cannot fail multiple times, the necessary actions
 	 * has already be taken, so bail out.
 	 */
-	if (workerPool->failed)
+	if (workerPool->failureState == WORKER_POOL_FAILED ||
+		workerPool->failureState == WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL)
 	{
 		return;
 	}
@@ -4033,7 +4145,11 @@ WorkerPoolFailed(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 
 	/* we do not want more connections in this pool */
 	workerPool->readyTaskCount = 0;
-	workerPool->failed = true;
+	if (workerPool->failureState != WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL)
+	{
+		/* we prefer not to override WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL */
+		workerPool->failureState = WORKER_POOL_FAILED;
+	}
 
 	/*
 	 * The reason is that when replication factor is > 1 and we are performing
@@ -4050,7 +4166,8 @@ WorkerPoolFailed(WorkerPool *workerPool)
 		foreach_ptr(pool, workerList)
 		{
 			/* failed pools or pools without any connection attempts ignored */
-			if (pool->failed || INSTR_TIME_IS_ZERO(pool->poolStartTime))
+			if (pool->failureState == WORKER_POOL_FAILED ||
+				INSTR_TIME_IS_ZERO(pool->poolStartTime))
 			{
 				continue;
 			}
@@ -4126,11 +4243,20 @@ PlacementExecutionDone(TaskPlacementExecution *placementExecution, bool succeede
 		return;
 	}
 
-	/* mark the placement execution as finished */
 	if (succeeded)
 	{
+		/* mark the placement execution as finished */
 		placementExecution->executionState = PLACEMENT_EXECUTION_FINISHED;
 	}
+	else if (CanFailoverPlacementExecutionToLocalExecution(placementExecution))
+	{
+		/*
+		 * The placement execution can be done over local execution, so it is a soft
+		 * failure for now.
+		 */
+		placementExecution->executionState =
+			PLACEMENT_EXECUTION_FAILOVER_TO_LOCAL_EXECUTION;
+	}
 	else
 	{
 		if (ShouldMarkPlacementsInvalidOnFailure(execution))
@@ -4174,13 +4300,36 @@ PlacementExecutionDone(TaskPlacementExecution *placementExecution, bool succeede
 	 * Update unfinishedTaskCount only when state changes from not finished to
 	 * finished or failed state.
 	 */
-	TaskExecutionState newExecutionState = TaskExecutionStateMachine(
-		shardCommandExecution);
+	TaskExecutionState newExecutionState =
+		TaskExecutionStateMachine(shardCommandExecution);
 	if (newExecutionState == TASK_EXECUTION_FINISHED)
 	{
 		execution->unfinishedTaskCount--;
 		return;
 	}
+	else if (newExecutionState == TASK_EXECUTION_FAILOVER_TO_LOCAL_EXECUTION)
+	{
+		execution->unfinishedTaskCount--;
+
+		/* move the task to the local execution */
+		Task *task = shardCommandExecution->task;
+		execution->localTaskList = lappend(execution->localTaskList, task);
+
+		/* remove the task from the remote execution list */
+		execution->remoteTaskList = list_delete_ptr(execution->remoteTaskList, task);
+
+		/*
+		 * As we decided to failover this task to local execution, we cannot
+		 * allow remote execution to this pool during this distributedExecution.
+		 */
+		SetLocalExecutionStatus(LOCAL_EXECUTION_REQUIRED);
+		workerPool->failureState = WORKER_POOL_FAILED_OVER_TO_LOCAL;
+
+		ereport(DEBUG4, (errmsg("Task %d execution is failed over to local execution",
+								task->taskId)));
+
+		return;
+	}
 	else if (newExecutionState == TASK_EXECUTION_FAILED)
 	{
 		execution->unfinishedTaskCount--;
@@ -4199,6 +4348,60 @@ PlacementExecutionDone(TaskPlacementExecution *placementExecution, bool succeede
 }
 
 
+/*
+ * CanFailoverPlacementExecutionToLocalExecution returns true if the input
+ * TaskPlacementExecution can be fail overed to local execution. In other words,
+ * the execution can be deferred to local execution.
+ */
+static bool
+CanFailoverPlacementExecutionToLocalExecution(TaskPlacementExecution *placementExecution)
+{
+	if (!EnableLocalExecution)
+	{
+		/* the user explicitly disabled local execution */
+		return false;
+	}
+
+	if (GetCurrentLocalExecutionStatus() == LOCAL_EXECUTION_DISABLED)
+	{
+		/*
+		 * If the current transaction accessed the local node over a connection
+		 * then we can't use local execution because of visibility issues.
+		 */
+		return false;
+	}
+
+	WorkerPool *workerPool = placementExecution->workerPool;
+	if (!workerPool->poolToLocalNode)
+	{
+		/* we can only fail over tasks to local execution for local pools */
+		return false;
+	}
+
+	if (workerPool->activeConnectionCount > 0)
+	{
+		/*
+		 * The pool has already active connections, the executor is capable
+		 * of using those active connections. So, no need to failover
+		 * to the local execution.
+		 */
+		return false;
+	}
+
+	if (placementExecution->assignedSession != NULL)
+	{
+		/*
+		 * If the placement execution has been assigned to a specific session,
+		 * it has to be executed over that session. Otherwise, it would cause
+		 * self-deadlocks and break read-your-own-writes consistency.
+		 */
+		return false;
+	}
+
+	return true;
+}
+
+
 /*
  * ScheduleNextPlacementExecution is triggered if the query needs to be
  * executed on any or all placements in order and there is a placement on
@@ -4361,6 +4564,7 @@ TaskExecutionStateMachine(ShardCommandExecution *shardCommandExecution)
 	PlacementExecutionOrder executionOrder = shardCommandExecution->executionOrder;
 	int donePlacementCount = 0;
 	int failedPlacementCount = 0;
+	int failedOverPlacementCount = 0;
 	int placementCount = 0;
 	int placementExecutionIndex = 0;
 	int placementExecutionCount = shardCommandExecution->placementExecutionCount;
@@ -4386,6 +4590,10 @@ TaskExecutionStateMachine(ShardCommandExecution *shardCommandExecution)
 		{
 			failedPlacementCount++;
 		}
+		else if (executionState == PLACEMENT_EXECUTION_FAILOVER_TO_LOCAL_EXECUTION)
+		{
+			failedOverPlacementCount++;
+		}
 
 		placementCount++;
 	}
@@ -4402,6 +4610,21 @@ TaskExecutionStateMachine(ShardCommandExecution *shardCommandExecution)
 	{
 		currentTaskExecutionState = TASK_EXECUTION_FINISHED;
 	}
+	else if (failedOverPlacementCount + donePlacementCount + failedPlacementCount ==
+			 placementCount)
+	{
+		/*
+		 * For any given task, we could have 3 end states:
+		 *  - "donePlacementCount" indicates the successful placement executions
+		 *  - "failedPlacementCount" indicates the failed placement executions
+		 *  - "failedOverPlacementCount" indicates the placement executions that
+		 *     are failed when using remote execution due to connection errors,
+		 *     but there is still a possibility of being successful via
+		 *     local execution. So, for now they are considered as soft
+		 *     errors.
+		 */
+		currentTaskExecutionState = TASK_EXECUTION_FAILOVER_TO_LOCAL_EXECUTION;
+	}
 	else
 	{
 		currentTaskExecutionState = TASK_EXECUTION_NOT_FINISHED;
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/shared_library_init.c b/src/backend/distributed/shared_library_init.c
index d51de7202..6c4de8fe5 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/shared_library_init.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/shared_library_init.c
@@ -113,6 +113,7 @@ static bool NoticeIfSubqueryPushdownEnabled(bool *newval, void **extra, GucSourc
 static bool NodeConninfoGucCheckHook(char **newval, void **extra, GucSource source);
 static void NodeConninfoGucAssignHook(const char *newval, void *extra);
 static const char * MaxSharedPoolSizeGucShowHook(void);
+static const char * LocalPoolSizeGucShowHook(void);
 static bool StatisticsCollectionGucCheckHook(bool *newval, void **extra, GucSource
 											 source);
 static void CitusAuthHook(Port *port, int status);
@@ -693,6 +694,21 @@ RegisterCitusConfigVariables(void)
 		GUC_NO_SHOW_ALL,
 		NoticeIfSubqueryPushdownEnabled, NULL, NULL);
 
+	DefineCustomIntVariable(
+		"citus.local_shared_pool_size",
+		gettext_noop(
+			"Sets the maximum number of connections allowed for the shards on the "
+			"local node across all the backends from this node. Setting to -1 disables "
+			"connections throttling. Setting to 0 makes it auto-adjust, meaning "
+			"equal to the half of max_connections on the coordinator."),
+		gettext_noop("As a rule of thumb, the value should be at most equal to the "
+					 "max_connections on the local node."),
+		&LocalSharedPoolSize,
+		0, -1, INT_MAX,
+		PGC_SIGHUP,
+		GUC_SUPERUSER_ONLY,
+		NULL, NULL, LocalPoolSizeGucShowHook);
+
 	DefineCustomBoolVariable(
 		"citus.log_multi_join_order",
 		gettext_noop("Logs the distributed join order to the server log."),
@@ -1764,6 +1780,21 @@ MaxSharedPoolSizeGucShowHook(void)
 }
 
 
+/*
+ * LocalPoolSizeGucShowHook overrides the value that is shown to the
+ * user when the default value has not been set.
+ */
+static const char *
+LocalPoolSizeGucShowHook(void)
+{
+	StringInfo newvalue = makeStringInfo();
+
+	appendStringInfo(newvalue, "%d", GetLocalSharedPoolSize());
+
+	return (const char *) newvalue->data;
+}
+
+
 static bool
 StatisticsCollectionGucCheckHook(bool *newval, void **extra, GucSource source)
 {
diff --git a/src/include/distributed/shared_connection_stats.h b/src/include/distributed/shared_connection_stats.h
index 9c31fdcf6..1efb37d28 100644
--- a/src/include/distributed/shared_connection_stats.h
+++ b/src/include/distributed/shared_connection_stats.h
@@ -13,19 +13,23 @@
 
 #define ADJUST_POOLSIZE_AUTOMATICALLY 0
 #define DISABLE_CONNECTION_THROTTLING -1
+#define DISABLE_REMOTE_CONNECTIONS_FOR_LOCAL_QUERIES -1
 
 
 extern int MaxSharedPoolSize;
+extern int LocalSharedPoolSize;
 
 
 extern void InitializeSharedConnectionStats(void);
 extern void WaitForSharedConnection(void);
 extern void WakeupWaiterBackendsForSharedConnection(void);
 extern int GetMaxSharedPoolSize(void);
+extern int GetLocalSharedPoolSize(void);
 extern bool TryToIncrementSharedConnectionCounter(const char *hostname, int port);
 extern void WaitLoopForSharedConnection(const char *hostname, int port);
 extern void DecrementSharedConnectionCounter(const char *hostname, int port);
 extern void IncrementSharedConnectionCounter(const char *hostname, int port);
-extern int AdaptiveConnectionManagementFlag(int activeConnectionCount);
+extern int AdaptiveConnectionManagementFlag(bool connectToLocalNode, int
+											activeConnectionCount);
 
 #endif /* SHARED_CONNECTION_STATS_H */
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/failure_distributed_results.out b/src/test/regress/expected/failure_distributed_results.out
index 4065b648a..bc1cfca00 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/failure_distributed_results.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/failure_distributed_results.out
@@ -81,11 +81,12 @@ SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.onQuery(query="worker_partition_query_result.*test_
 (1 row)
 
 BEGIN;
+SET LOCAL client_min_messages TO DEBUG1;
 CREATE TABLE distributed_result_info AS
   SELECT resultId, nodeport, rowcount, targetShardId, targetShardIndex
   FROM partition_task_list_results('test', $$ SELECT * FROM source_table $$, 'target_table')
           NATURAL JOIN pg_dist_node;
-WARNING:  connection to the remote node localhost:xxxxx failed with the following error: server closed the connection unexpectedly
+DEBUG:  connection to the remote node localhost:xxxxx failed with the following error: server closed the connection unexpectedly
 	This probably means the server terminated abnormally
 	before or while processing the request.
 SELECT * FROM distributed_result_info ORDER BY resultId;
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/failure_failover_to_local_execution.out b/src/test/regress/expected/failure_failover_to_local_execution.out
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..5427ca9ae
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/failure_failover_to_local_execution.out
@@ -0,0 +1,120 @@
+CREATE SCHEMA failure_failover_to_local_execution;
+SET search_path TO failure_failover_to_local_execution;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.allow()');
+ mitmproxy
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+SET citus.next_shard_id TO 1980000;
+-- on Citus-mx, we can have
+SELECT start_metadata_sync_to_node('localhost', :worker_1_port);
+ start_metadata_sync_to_node
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+SELECT start_metadata_sync_to_node('localhost', :worker_2_proxy_port);
+ start_metadata_sync_to_node
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+SET citus.replication_model TO 'streaming';
+SET citus.shard_replication_factor TO 1;
+CREATE TABLE failover_to_local (key int PRIMARY KEY, value varchar(10));
+SELECT create_distributed_table('failover_to_local', 'key');
+ create_distributed_table
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+\c - - - :worker_2_port
+SET search_path TO failure_failover_to_local_execution;
+-- we don't want any cached connections
+SET citus.max_cached_conns_per_worker to 0;
+INSERT INTO failover_to_local SELECT i, i::text FROM generate_series(0,20)i;
+-- even if the connection establishment fails, Citus can
+-- failover to local exection
+SET citus.node_connection_timeout TO 400;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.delay(500)');
+ mitmproxy
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+SET citus.log_local_commands TO ON;
+SET client_min_messages TO DEBUG1;
+SELECT count(*) FROM failover_to_local;
+DEBUG:  could not establish any connections to the node localhost:xxxxx after 400 ms
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM failure_failover_to_local_execution.failover_to_local_1980000 failover_to_local WHERE true
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM failure_failover_to_local_execution.failover_to_local_1980002 failover_to_local WHERE true
+ count
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+    21
+(1 row)
+
+RESET client_min_messages;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.allow()');
+ mitmproxy
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+-- if the remote query execution fails, Citus
+-- does not try to fallback to local execution
+SELECT key / 0 FROM failover_to_local;
+ERROR:  division by zero
+CONTEXT:  while executing command on localhost:xxxxx
+-- if the local execution is disabled, Citus does
+-- not try to fallback to local execution
+SET citus.enable_local_execution TO false;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.delay(500)');
+ mitmproxy
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+SET citus.log_local_commands TO ON;
+SELECT count(*) FROM failover_to_local;
+ERROR:  could not establish any connections to the node localhost:xxxxx after 400 ms
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.allow()');
+ mitmproxy
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+RESET citus.enable_local_execution;
+-- even if we are on a multi-shard command, Citus can
+-- failover to the local execution if no connection attempts succeed
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.onAuthenticationOk().kill()');
+ mitmproxy
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+SET citus.log_remote_commands TO ON;
+SELECT count(*) FROM failover_to_local;
+NOTICE:  issuing SELECT count(*) AS count FROM failure_failover_to_local_execution.failover_to_local_1980001 failover_to_local WHERE true
+DETAIL:  on server postgres@localhost:xxxxx connectionId: xxxxxxx
+NOTICE:  issuing SELECT count(*) AS count FROM failure_failover_to_local_execution.failover_to_local_1980003 failover_to_local WHERE true
+DETAIL:  on server postgres@localhost:xxxxx connectionId: xxxxxxx
+WARNING:  connection to the remote node localhost:xxxxx failed with the following error: server closed the connection unexpectedly
+	This probably means the server terminated abnormally
+	before or while processing the request.
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM failure_failover_to_local_execution.failover_to_local_1980000 failover_to_local WHERE true
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM failure_failover_to_local_execution.failover_to_local_1980002 failover_to_local WHERE true
+ count
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+    21
+(1 row)
+
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.allow()');
+ mitmproxy
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+\c - - - :master_port
+SET client_min_messages TO ERROR;
+DROP SCHEMA failure_failover_to_local_execution CASCADE;
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/failure_test_helpers.out b/src/test/regress/expected/failure_test_helpers.out
index a66749dff..8c2be9825 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/failure_test_helpers.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/failure_test_helpers.out
@@ -48,3 +48,42 @@ BEGIN
   RETURN QUERY SELECT * FROM mitmproxy_result;
 END;
 $$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
+\c - - - :worker_2_port
+-- Add some helper functions for sending commands to mitmproxy
+CREATE FUNCTION citus.mitmproxy(text) RETURNS TABLE(result text) AS $$
+DECLARE
+  command ALIAS FOR $1;
+BEGIN
+  CREATE TEMPORARY TABLE mitmproxy_command (command text) ON COMMIT DROP;
+  CREATE TEMPORARY TABLE mitmproxy_result (res text) ON COMMIT DROP;
+
+  INSERT INTO mitmproxy_command VALUES (command);
+
+  EXECUTE format('COPY mitmproxy_command TO %L', current_setting('citus.mitmfifo'));
+  EXECUTE format('COPY mitmproxy_result FROM %L', current_setting('citus.mitmfifo'));
+
+  RETURN QUERY SELECT * FROM mitmproxy_result;
+END;
+$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
+CREATE FUNCTION citus.clear_network_traffic() RETURNS void AS $$
+BEGIN
+  PERFORM citus.mitmproxy('recorder.reset()');
+  RETURN; -- return void
+END;
+$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
+CREATE FUNCTION citus.dump_network_traffic()
+RETURNS TABLE(conn int, source text, message text) AS $$
+BEGIN
+  CREATE TEMPORARY TABLE mitmproxy_command (command text) ON COMMIT DROP;
+  CREATE TEMPORARY TABLE mitmproxy_result (
+    conn int, source text, message text
+  ) ON COMMIT DROP;
+
+  INSERT INTO mitmproxy_command VALUES ('recorder.dump()');
+
+  EXECUTE format('COPY mitmproxy_command TO %L', current_setting('citus.mitmfifo'));
+  EXECUTE format('COPY mitmproxy_result FROM %L', current_setting('citus.mitmfifo'));
+
+  RETURN QUERY SELECT * FROM mitmproxy_result;
+END;
+$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/single_node.out b/src/test/regress/expected/single_node.out
index a1250150a..83050929f 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/single_node.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/single_node.out
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ SELECT create_reference_table('ref');
 (1 row)
 
 CREATE TABLE local(c int, d int);
-CREATE TABLE public.another_schema_table(a int);
+CREATE TABLE public.another_schema_table(a int, b int);
 SELECT create_distributed_table('public.another_schema_table', 'a');
  create_distributed_table
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -265,37 +265,37 @@ BEGIN;
 ERROR:  citus size functions cannot be called in transaction blocks which contain multi-shard data modifications
 ROLLBACK;
 BEGIN;
-    -- single shard insert with citus_table_size
+	-- single shard insert with citus_table_size
 	INSERT INTO test_citus_size_func VALUES (3);
 	SELECT citus_table_size('test_citus_size_func');
 ERROR:  citus size functions cannot be called in transaction blocks which contain multi-shard data modifications
 ROLLBACK;
 BEGIN;
-    -- multi shard modification with citus_table_size
+	-- multi shard modification with citus_table_size
 	INSERT INTO test_citus_size_func  SELECT * FROM  test_citus_size_func;
 	SELECT citus_table_size('test_citus_size_func');
 ERROR:  citus size functions cannot be called in transaction blocks which contain multi-shard data modifications
 ROLLBACK;
 BEGIN;
-    -- single shard insert with citus_relation_size
+	-- single shard insert with citus_relation_size
 	INSERT INTO test_citus_size_func VALUES (3);
 	SELECT citus_relation_size('test_citus_size_func');
 ERROR:  citus size functions cannot be called in transaction blocks which contain multi-shard data modifications
 ROLLBACK;
 BEGIN;
-    -- multi shard modification with citus_relation_size
+	-- multi shard modification with citus_relation_size
 	INSERT INTO test_citus_size_func  SELECT * FROM  test_citus_size_func;
 	SELECT citus_relation_size('test_citus_size_func');
 ERROR:  citus size functions cannot be called in transaction blocks which contain multi-shard data modifications
 ROLLBACK;
 BEGIN;
-    -- single shard insert with citus_total_relation_size
+	-- single shard insert with citus_total_relation_size
 	INSERT INTO test_citus_size_func VALUES (3);
 	SELECT citus_total_relation_size('test_citus_size_func');
 ERROR:  citus size functions cannot be called in transaction blocks which contain multi-shard data modifications
 ROLLBACK;
 BEGIN;
-    -- multi shard modification with citus_total_relation_size
+	-- multi shard modification with citus_total_relation_size
 	INSERT INTO test_citus_size_func  SELECT * FROM  test_citus_size_func;
 	SELECT citus_total_relation_size('test_citus_size_func');
 ERROR:  citus size functions cannot be called in transaction blocks which contain multi-shard data modifications
@@ -1097,9 +1097,9 @@ SELECT pg_catalog.get_all_active_client_backend_count();
 (1 row)
 
 BEGIN;
-	SET citus.shard_count TO 32;
-	SET citus.force_max_query_parallelization TO ON;
-	SET citus.enable_local_execution TO false;
+	SET LOCAL citus.shard_count TO 32;
+	SET LOCAL citus.force_max_query_parallelization TO ON;
+	SET LOCAL citus.enable_local_execution TO false;
 	CREATE TABLE test (a int);
 	SET citus.shard_replication_factor TO 1;
 	SELECT create_distributed_table('test', 'a');
@@ -1122,11 +1122,101 @@ BEGIN;
 (1 row)
 
 ROLLBACK;
+\c - - - :master_port
+SET search_path TO single_node;
+-- simulate that even if there is no connection slots
+-- to connect, Citus can switch to local execution
+SET citus.force_max_query_parallelization TO false;
+SET citus.log_remote_commands TO ON;
+ALTER SYSTEM SET citus.local_shared_pool_size TO -1;
+SELECT pg_reload_conf();
+ pg_reload_conf
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+ t
+(1 row)
+
+SELECT pg_sleep(0.1);
+ pg_sleep
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+SET citus.executor_slow_start_interval TO 10;
+SELECT count(*) from another_schema_table;
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630509 another_schema_table WHERE true
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630510 another_schema_table WHERE true
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630511 another_schema_table WHERE true
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630512 another_schema_table WHERE true
+ count
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+     0
+(1 row)
+
+UPDATE another_schema_table SET b = b;
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: UPDATE single_node.another_schema_table_90630509 another_schema_table SET b = b
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: UPDATE single_node.another_schema_table_90630510 another_schema_table SET b = b
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: UPDATE single_node.another_schema_table_90630511 another_schema_table SET b = b
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: UPDATE single_node.another_schema_table_90630512 another_schema_table SET b = b
+-- INSERT .. SELECT pushdown and INSERT .. SELECT via repartitioning
+-- not that we ignore INSERT .. SELECT via coordinator as it relies on
+-- COPY command
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table SELECT * FROM another_schema_table;
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: INSERT INTO single_node.another_schema_table_90630509 AS citus_table_alias (a, b) SELECT a, b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630509 another_schema_table WHERE (a IS NOT NULL)
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: INSERT INTO single_node.another_schema_table_90630510 AS citus_table_alias (a, b) SELECT a, b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630510 another_schema_table WHERE (a IS NOT NULL)
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: INSERT INTO single_node.another_schema_table_90630511 AS citus_table_alias (a, b) SELECT a, b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630511 another_schema_table WHERE (a IS NOT NULL)
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: INSERT INTO single_node.another_schema_table_90630512 AS citus_table_alias (a, b) SELECT a, b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630512 another_schema_table WHERE (a IS NOT NULL)
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table SELECT b::int, a::int FROM another_schema_table;
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT partition_index, 'repartitioned_results_xxxxx_from_90630509_to' || '_' || partition_index::text , rows_written FROM worker_partition_query_result('repartitioned_results_xxxxx_from_90630509_to','SELECT b AS a, a AS b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630509 another_schema_table WHERE true',0,'hash','{-2147483648,-1073741824,0,1073741824}'::text[],'{-1073741825,-1,1073741823,2147483647}'::text[],true) WHERE rows_written > 0
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT partition_index, 'repartitioned_results_xxxxx_from_90630510_to' || '_' || partition_index::text , rows_written FROM worker_partition_query_result('repartitioned_results_xxxxx_from_90630510_to','SELECT b AS a, a AS b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630510 another_schema_table WHERE true',0,'hash','{-2147483648,-1073741824,0,1073741824}'::text[],'{-1073741825,-1,1073741823,2147483647}'::text[],true) WHERE rows_written > 0
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT partition_index, 'repartitioned_results_xxxxx_from_90630511_to' || '_' || partition_index::text , rows_written FROM worker_partition_query_result('repartitioned_results_xxxxx_from_90630511_to','SELECT b AS a, a AS b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630511 another_schema_table WHERE true',0,'hash','{-2147483648,-1073741824,0,1073741824}'::text[],'{-1073741825,-1,1073741823,2147483647}'::text[],true) WHERE rows_written > 0
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT partition_index, 'repartitioned_results_xxxxx_from_90630512_to' || '_' || partition_index::text , rows_written FROM worker_partition_query_result('repartitioned_results_xxxxx_from_90630512_to','SELECT b AS a, a AS b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630512 another_schema_table WHERE true',0,'hash','{-2147483648,-1073741824,0,1073741824}'::text[],'{-1073741825,-1,1073741823,2147483647}'::text[],true) WHERE rows_written > 0
+-- multi-row INSERTs
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table VALUES (1,1), (2,2), (3,3), (4,4), (5,5),(6,6),(7,7);
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: INSERT INTO single_node.another_schema_table_90630509 AS citus_table_alias (a, b) VALUES (1,1), (5,5)
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: INSERT INTO single_node.another_schema_table_90630510 AS citus_table_alias (a, b) VALUES (3,3), (4,4), (7,7)
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: INSERT INTO single_node.another_schema_table_90630511 AS citus_table_alias (a, b) VALUES (6,6)
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: INSERT INTO single_node.another_schema_table_90630512 AS citus_table_alias (a, b) VALUES (2,2)
+-- intermediate results
+WITH cte_1 AS (SELECT * FROM another_schema_table LIMIT 1000)
+	SELECT count(*) FROM cte_1;
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT a, b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630509 another_schema_table WHERE true LIMIT '1000'::bigint
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT a, b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630510 another_schema_table WHERE true LIMIT '1000'::bigint
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT a, b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630511 another_schema_table WHERE true LIMIT '1000'::bigint
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT a, b FROM single_node.another_schema_table_90630512 another_schema_table WHERE true LIMIT '1000'::bigint
+NOTICE:  executing the command locally: SELECT count(*) AS count FROM (SELECT intermediate_result.a, intermediate_result.b FROM read_intermediate_result('XXX_1'::text, 'binary'::citus_copy_format) intermediate_result(a integer, b integer)) cte_1
+ count
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+     7
+(1 row)
+
+-- if the local execution is disabled, we cannot failover to
+-- local execution and the queries would fail
+SET citus.enable_local_execution TO  false;
+SELECT count(*) from another_schema_table;
+ERROR:  could not establish any connections to the node localhost:xxxxx when local execution is also disabled.
+HINT:  Enable local execution via SET citus.enable_local_execution TO true;
+UPDATE another_schema_table SET b = b;
+ERROR:  could not establish any connections to the node localhost:xxxxx when local execution is also disabled.
+HINT:  Enable local execution via SET citus.enable_local_execution TO true;
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table SELECT * FROM another_schema_table;
+ERROR:  could not establish any connections to the node localhost:xxxxx when local execution is also disabled.
+HINT:  Enable local execution via SET citus.enable_local_execution TO true;
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table SELECT b::int, a::int FROM another_schema_table;
+ERROR:  could not establish any connections to the node localhost:xxxxx when local execution is also disabled.
+HINT:  Enable local execution via SET citus.enable_local_execution TO true;
+WITH cte_1 AS (SELECT * FROM another_schema_table LIMIT 1000)
+	SELECT count(*) FROM cte_1;
+ERROR:  could not establish any connections to the node localhost:xxxxx when local execution is also disabled.
+HINT:  Enable local execution via SET citus.enable_local_execution TO true;
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table VALUES (1,1), (2,2), (3,3), (4,4), (5,5),(6,6),(7,7);
+ERROR:  could not establish any connections to the node localhost:xxxxx when local execution is also disabled.
+HINT:  Enable local execution via SET citus.enable_local_execution TO true;
 -- set the values to originals back
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.max_cached_conns_per_worker;
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.distributed_deadlock_detection_factor;
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.recover_2pc_interval;
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.distributed_deadlock_detection_factor;
+ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.local_shared_pool_size;
 SELECT pg_reload_conf();
  pg_reload_conf
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/src/test/regress/failure_schedule b/src/test/regress/failure_schedule
index e7d183399..d82d5236f 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/failure_schedule
+++ b/src/test/regress/failure_schedule
@@ -35,6 +35,9 @@ test: failure_multi_row_insert
 test: failure_mx_metadata_sync
 test: failure_connection_establishment
 
+# this test syncs metadata to the workers
+test: failure_failover_to_local_execution
+
 # test that no tests leaked intermediate results. This should always be last
 test: ensure_no_intermediate_data_leak
 
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/failure_distributed_results.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/failure_distributed_results.sql
index 6f6e12805..95e4d5513 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/sql/failure_distributed_results.sql
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/failure_distributed_results.sql
@@ -50,6 +50,7 @@ ROLLBACk;
 -- with failure, results from 100802 should be retried and succeed on 57637
 SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.onQuery(query="worker_partition_query_result.*test_from_100802").kill()');
 BEGIN;
+SET LOCAL client_min_messages TO DEBUG1;
 CREATE TABLE distributed_result_info AS
   SELECT resultId, nodeport, rowcount, targetShardId, targetShardIndex
   FROM partition_task_list_results('test', $$ SELECT * FROM source_table $$, 'target_table')
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/failure_failover_to_local_execution.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/failure_failover_to_local_execution.sql
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..c43f2b41d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/failure_failover_to_local_execution.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+CREATE SCHEMA failure_failover_to_local_execution;
+SET search_path TO failure_failover_to_local_execution;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.allow()');
+
+SET citus.next_shard_id TO 1980000;
+
+-- on Citus-mx, we can have
+SELECT start_metadata_sync_to_node('localhost', :worker_1_port);
+SELECT start_metadata_sync_to_node('localhost', :worker_2_proxy_port);
+
+SET citus.replication_model TO 'streaming';
+SET citus.shard_replication_factor TO 1;
+CREATE TABLE failover_to_local (key int PRIMARY KEY, value varchar(10));
+SELECT create_distributed_table('failover_to_local', 'key');
+
+\c - - - :worker_2_port
+SET search_path TO failure_failover_to_local_execution;
+
+-- we don't want any cached connections
+SET citus.max_cached_conns_per_worker to 0;
+INSERT INTO failover_to_local SELECT i, i::text FROM generate_series(0,20)i;
+
+
+-- even if the connection establishment fails, Citus can
+-- failover to local exection
+SET citus.node_connection_timeout TO 400;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.delay(500)');
+SET citus.log_local_commands TO ON;
+SET client_min_messages TO DEBUG1;
+SELECT count(*) FROM failover_to_local;
+RESET client_min_messages;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.allow()');
+
+-- if the remote query execution fails, Citus
+-- does not try to fallback to local execution
+SELECT key / 0 FROM failover_to_local;
+
+-- if the local execution is disabled, Citus does
+-- not try to fallback to local execution
+SET citus.enable_local_execution TO false;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.delay(500)');
+SET citus.log_local_commands TO ON;
+SELECT count(*) FROM failover_to_local;
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.allow()');
+RESET citus.enable_local_execution;
+
+-- even if we are on a multi-shard command, Citus can
+-- failover to the local execution if no connection attempts succeed
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.onAuthenticationOk().kill()');
+SET citus.log_remote_commands TO ON;
+SELECT count(*) FROM failover_to_local;
+
+SELECT citus.mitmproxy('conn.allow()');
+
+\c - - - :master_port
+SET client_min_messages TO ERROR;
+DROP SCHEMA failure_failover_to_local_execution CASCADE;
+
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/failure_test_helpers.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/failure_test_helpers.sql
index 13a9ea24a..7053905ac 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/sql/failure_test_helpers.sql
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/failure_test_helpers.sql
@@ -47,3 +47,47 @@ BEGIN
   RETURN QUERY SELECT * FROM mitmproxy_result;
 END;
 $$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
+
+\c - - - :worker_2_port
+
+-- Add some helper functions for sending commands to mitmproxy
+
+CREATE FUNCTION citus.mitmproxy(text) RETURNS TABLE(result text) AS $$
+DECLARE
+  command ALIAS FOR $1;
+BEGIN
+  CREATE TEMPORARY TABLE mitmproxy_command (command text) ON COMMIT DROP;
+  CREATE TEMPORARY TABLE mitmproxy_result (res text) ON COMMIT DROP;
+
+  INSERT INTO mitmproxy_command VALUES (command);
+
+  EXECUTE format('COPY mitmproxy_command TO %L', current_setting('citus.mitmfifo'));
+  EXECUTE format('COPY mitmproxy_result FROM %L', current_setting('citus.mitmfifo'));
+
+  RETURN QUERY SELECT * FROM mitmproxy_result;
+END;
+$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
+
+CREATE FUNCTION citus.clear_network_traffic() RETURNS void AS $$
+BEGIN
+  PERFORM citus.mitmproxy('recorder.reset()');
+  RETURN; -- return void
+END;
+$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
+
+CREATE FUNCTION citus.dump_network_traffic()
+RETURNS TABLE(conn int, source text, message text) AS $$
+BEGIN
+  CREATE TEMPORARY TABLE mitmproxy_command (command text) ON COMMIT DROP;
+  CREATE TEMPORARY TABLE mitmproxy_result (
+    conn int, source text, message text
+  ) ON COMMIT DROP;
+
+  INSERT INTO mitmproxy_command VALUES ('recorder.dump()');
+
+  EXECUTE format('COPY mitmproxy_command TO %L', current_setting('citus.mitmfifo'));
+  EXECUTE format('COPY mitmproxy_result FROM %L', current_setting('citus.mitmfifo'));
+
+  RETURN QUERY SELECT * FROM mitmproxy_result;
+END;
+$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/single_node.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/single_node.sql
index 1e78c3030..ce8c82cbd 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/sql/single_node.sql
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/single_node.sql
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ CREATE TABLE ref(a int, b int);
 SELECT create_reference_table('ref');
 CREATE TABLE local(c int, d int);
 
-CREATE TABLE public.another_schema_table(a int);
+CREATE TABLE public.another_schema_table(a int, b int);
 SELECT create_distributed_table('public.another_schema_table', 'a');
 
 -- Confirm the basics work
@@ -611,9 +611,9 @@ SET search_path TO single_node;
 SELECT count(*) from should_commit;
 SELECT pg_catalog.get_all_active_client_backend_count();
 BEGIN;
-	SET citus.shard_count TO 32;
-	SET citus.force_max_query_parallelization TO ON;
-	SET citus.enable_local_execution TO false;
+	SET LOCAL citus.shard_count TO 32;
+	SET LOCAL citus.force_max_query_parallelization TO ON;
+	SET LOCAL citus.enable_local_execution TO false;
 
 	CREATE TABLE test (a int);
 	SET citus.shard_replication_factor TO 1;
@@ -624,11 +624,54 @@ BEGIN;
 	SELECT pg_catalog.get_all_active_client_backend_count();
 ROLLBACK;
 
+
+\c - - - :master_port
+SET search_path TO single_node;
+
+
+-- simulate that even if there is no connection slots
+-- to connect, Citus can switch to local execution
+SET citus.force_max_query_parallelization TO false;
+SET citus.log_remote_commands TO ON;
+ALTER SYSTEM SET citus.local_shared_pool_size TO -1;
+SELECT pg_reload_conf();
+SELECT pg_sleep(0.1);
+SET citus.executor_slow_start_interval TO 10;
+SELECT count(*) from another_schema_table;
+
+UPDATE another_schema_table SET b = b;
+
+-- INSERT .. SELECT pushdown and INSERT .. SELECT via repartitioning
+-- not that we ignore INSERT .. SELECT via coordinator as it relies on
+-- COPY command
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table SELECT * FROM another_schema_table;
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table SELECT b::int, a::int FROM another_schema_table;
+
+-- multi-row INSERTs
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table VALUES (1,1), (2,2), (3,3), (4,4), (5,5),(6,6),(7,7);
+
+-- intermediate results
+WITH cte_1 AS (SELECT * FROM another_schema_table LIMIT 1000)
+	SELECT count(*) FROM cte_1;
+
+-- if the local execution is disabled, we cannot failover to
+-- local execution and the queries would fail
+SET citus.enable_local_execution TO  false;
+SELECT count(*) from another_schema_table;
+UPDATE another_schema_table SET b = b;
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table SELECT * FROM another_schema_table;
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table SELECT b::int, a::int FROM another_schema_table;
+WITH cte_1 AS (SELECT * FROM another_schema_table LIMIT 1000)
+	SELECT count(*) FROM cte_1;
+
+INSERT INTO another_schema_table VALUES (1,1), (2,2), (3,3), (4,4), (5,5),(6,6),(7,7);
+
 -- set the values to originals back
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.max_cached_conns_per_worker;
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.distributed_deadlock_detection_factor;
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.recover_2pc_interval;
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.distributed_deadlock_detection_factor;
+ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.local_shared_pool_size;
 SELECT pg_reload_conf();
 
 -- suppress notices