PA - US 219 Expressway Could Begin This Year

[NE2]

OSM is now updated. Someone already switched the tags from construction to completed motorway, but they left all the route tags alone.

People suck.

[1995hoo]

Anyone driven the new segment yet? I find myself wondering what the travel time would be coming from the DC area to, say, Seven Springs going via the new route instead of via Breezewood. I suppose the question would then become the best way to get around Somerset, because when I look at the map it occurs to me that going from the south to Seven Springs the new road may not save you any time at all depending on where you turn west.

(BTW, regarding going from the Turnpike to US-219, I used the old 219 once, back in 2006 driving from Pittsburgh to Rocky Gap State Park near Cumberland. My sat-nav sent us north on PA-601 to that short access road where the Wal-Mart is now, then south on 219. Talk about way the heck out of the way.)

[hbelkins]

Anyone driven the new segment yet? I find myself wondering what the travel time would be coming from the DC area to, say, Seven Springs going via the new route instead of via Breezewood. I suppose the question would then become the best way to get around Somerset, because when I look at the map it occurs to me that going from the south to Seven Springs the new road may not save you any time at all depending on where you turn west.

(BTW, regarding going from the Turnpike to US-219, I used the old 219 once, back in 2006 driving from Pittsburgh to Rocky Gap State Park near Cumberland. My sat-nav sent us north on PA-601 to that short access road where the Wal-Mart is now, then south on 219. Talk about way the heck out of the way.)

If all goes well, I'm going to drive it on Monday. I've only driven from Somerset to the state line once, and that was part of an attempt to clinch 219, so I've never had any experience on the shortcut route south of Somerset that's supposed to shave time and mileage off the existing 219. I think it's one of those Pennsylvania four-digit SRs.

And my plan is to shunpike. I'll be staying in Bedford or Breezewood, so I'm going to take PA 31 over to Somerset and avoid the turnpike.

[74/171FAN]

Anyone driven the new segment yet? I find myself wondering what the travel time would be coming from the DC area to, say, Seven Springs going via the new route instead of via Breezewood. I suppose the question would then become the best way to get around Somerset, because when I look at the map it occurs to me that going from the south to Seven Springs the new road may not save you any time at all depending on where you turn west.

(BTW, regarding going from the Turnpike to US-219, I used the old 219 once, back in 2006 driving from Pittsburgh to Rocky Gap State Park near Cumberland. My sat-nav sent us north on PA-601 to that short access road where the Wal-Mart is now, then south on 219. Talk about way the heck out of the way.)

If all goes well, I'm going to drive it on Monday. I've only driven from Somerset to the state line once, and that was part of an attempt to clinch 219, so I've never had any experience on the shortcut route south of Somerset that's supposed to shave time and mileage off the existing 219. I think it's one of those Pennsylvania four-digit SRs.

And my plan is to shunpike. I'll be staying in Bedford or Breezewood, so I'm going to take PA 31 over to Somerset and avoid the turnpike.

The shortcut route is Garrett Shortcut Rd (SR 2031).

[oscar]

And my plan is to shunpike. I'll be staying in Bedford or Breezewood, so I'm going to take PA 31 over to Somerset and avoid the turnpike.

The shortcut route is Garrett Shortcut Rd (SR 2031).

The shortcut doesn't get you from Bedford to Somerset. It only avoids part of the new US 219 segment -- what we want to snag, and in any case now a much better shortcut south from Somerset than the Garrett Shortcut.

My plan is to take PA 31 as well rather than the turnpike, time and weather/road conditions permitting.

[hbelkins]

And my plan is to shunpike. I'll be staying in Bedford or Breezewood, so I'm going to take PA 31 over to Somerset and avoid the turnpike.

The shortcut route is Garrett Shortcut Rd (SR 2031).

The shortcut doesn't get you from Bedford to Somerset. It only avoids part of the new US 219 segment -- what we want to snag, and in any case now a much better shortcut south from Somerset than the Garrett Shortcut.

My plan is to take PA 31 as well rather than the turnpike, time and weather/road conditions permitting.

Oh, I knew that the shortcut was for US 219 south of Somerset. I just wondered if that new segment of 219 rendered it a better overall route from Somerset to I-68 than the shortcut.

I'm now considering doing my 219 exploration on my way north (Saturday) instead of Monday morning.

[hbelkins]

Anyone driven the new segment yet? I find myself wondering what the travel time would be coming from the DC area to, say, Seven Springs going via the new route instead of via Breezewood. I suppose the question would then become the best way to get around Somerset, because when I look at the map it occurs to me that going from the south to Seven Springs the new road may not save you any time at all depending on where you turn west.

(BTW, regarding going from the Turnpike to US-219, I used the old 219 once, back in 2006 driving from Pittsburgh to Rocky Gap State Park near Cumberland. My sat-nav sent us north on PA-601 to that short access road where the Wal-Mart is now, then south on 219. Talk about way the heck out of the way.)

Drove it today. It took me 28 minutes to get from I-68 to the PA 281 exit.  The speed limit is 65 mph, and that's all I did, because the road was wet and the temp was hovering around 32. There had already been a snow removal effort on the road because snow was piled up on the shoulders. Very light traffic; had the weather been good I would probably have driven 75 mph. Saw absolutely no cops, and my trusty V-1 was on guard.

[Roadsguy]

Anyone driven the new segment yet? I find myself wondering what the travel time would be coming from the DC area to, say, Seven Springs going via the new route instead of via Breezewood. I suppose the question would then become the best way to get around Somerset, because when I look at the map it occurs to me that going from the south to Seven Springs the new road may not save you any time at all depending on where you turn west.

(BTW, regarding going from the Turnpike to US-219, I used the old 219 once, back in 2006 driving from Pittsburgh to Rocky Gap State Park near Cumberland. My sat-nav sent us north on PA-601 to that short access road where the Wal-Mart is now, then south on 219. Talk about way the heck out of the way.)

Drove it today. It took me 28 minutes to get from I-68 to the PA 281 exit.  The speed limit is 65 mph, and that's all I did, because the road was wet and the temp was hovering around 32. There had already been a snow removal effort on the road because snow was piled up on the shoulders. Very light traffic; had the weather been good I would probably have driven 75 mph. Saw absolutely no cops, and my trusty V-1 was on guard.

Does the 65 mph limit extend all the way to the southern end of the Meyersdale Bypass?

[cl94]

Anyone driven the new segment yet? I find myself wondering what the travel time would be coming from the DC area to, say, Seven Springs going via the new route instead of via Breezewood. I suppose the question would then become the best way to get around Somerset, because when I look at the map it occurs to me that going from the south to Seven Springs the new road may not save you any time at all depending on where you turn west.

(BTW, regarding going from the Turnpike to US-219, I used the old 219 once, back in 2006 driving from Pittsburgh to Rocky Gap State Park near Cumberland. My sat-nav sent us north on PA-601 to that short access road where the Wal-Mart is now, then south on 219. Talk about way the heck out of the way.)

Drove it today. It took me 28 minutes to get from I-68 to the PA 281 exit.  The speed limit is 65 mph, and that's all I did, because the road was wet and the temp was hovering around 32. There had already been a snow removal effort on the road because snow was piled up on the shoulders. Very light traffic; had the weather been good I would probably have driven 75 mph. Saw absolutely no cops, and my trusty V-1 was on guard.

Does the 65 mph limit extend all the way to the southern end of the Meyersdale Bypass?

Having driven 219 from I-90 down to I-68 today, I can confirm that it does. Ton of deer along the new segment.

[Bitmapped]

And my plan is to shunpike. I'll be staying in Bedford or Breezewood, so I'm going to take PA 31 over to Somerset and avoid the turnpike.

The shortcut route is Garrett Shortcut Rd (SR 2031).

The shortcut doesn't get you from Bedford to Somerset. It only avoids part of the new US 219 segment -- what we want to snag, and in any case now a much better shortcut south from Somerset than the Garrett Shortcut.

My plan is to take PA 31 as well rather than the turnpike, time and weather/road conditions permitting.

Oh, I knew that the shortcut was for US 219 south of Somerset. I just wondered if that new segment of 219 rendered it a better overall route from Somerset to I-68 than the shortcut.

I'm now considering doing my 219 exploration on my way north (Saturday) instead of Monday morning.

New 219 is definitely a better route than Garrett Shortcut Road. I normally took Garrett Shortcut Road rather than US 219 since it was shorter and had better geometry (flatter, straighter), but the new freeway is shorter still for through traffic.

Now that the freeway is done, I think this becomes my preferred route from Morgantown to Somerset/north instead of WV 26 and PA 281.

[Bitmapped]

I noticed something interesting on Google Maps. In terrain view, you can see that PennDOT graded ROW for the mainline and ramps for about 3800 feet heading south from Berlin Plank Road back in the 1970s: https://goo.gl/maps/Pp6ncrDdPR62

When they built the new road, it veers off this alignment about 2800 feet south of Berlin Plank Road to avoid something and then comes back to where that straight alignment would have gone about 3000 feet later: https://goo.gl/maps/Aqh4sEfhEiN2

[Roadsguy]

I noticed something interesting on Google Maps. In terrain view, you can see that PennDOT graded ROW for the mainline and ramps for about 3800 feet heading south from Berlin Plank Road back in the 1970s: https://goo.gl/maps/Pp6ncrDdPR62

When they built the new road, it veers off this alignment about 2800 feet south of Berlin Plank Road to avoid something and then comes back to where that straight alignment would have gone about 3000 feet later: https://goo.gl/maps/Aqh4sEfhEiN2

I'm sure it was rerouted around some environmental feature.

You can also tell by comparing the two sections of expressway, and even comparing them both to the Meyersdale Bypass, how much they've reduced median widths for 219 over time.

[Beltway]

I'm sure it was rerouted around some environmental feature.

Abandoned mine, sinkholes, those are possibilities.

[BrianP]

I'm sure it was rerouted around some environmental feature.

Abandoned mine, sinkholes, those are possibilities.

As well as acid producing rock:
http://www3.geosc.psu.edu/~jlm80/PAacidRockMap.pdf

[ARMOURERERIC]

I thought it was to avoid a state game land.

[Bitmapped]

I thought it was to avoid a state game land.

State Game Lands #50 covers both sides of the highway here.

[Roadsguy]

They've got it on Google... sort of. It doesn't fully connect at the north end and all the shields and high road status are still on the old road. It is shown as a freeway, though the existing Meyersdale Bypass section is not.

[PAHighways]

The addition must have just happened yesterday, as I found the entire section missing while working on updating the US 219 exit guide on Sunday and Monday.  Google Maps still won't use it for directions as it keeps the routing on the former alignment.

[1995hoo]

For those of you who are Travel Mapping members, take note that you'll need to edit your US-219 entries if you haven't driven the new segment–the waypoints haven't changed, so if you've previously driven from Somerset down to Meyersdale (or vice versa) it'll mark the new segment as having been driven.

[74/171FAN]

For those of you who are Travel Mapping members, take note that you'll need to edit your US-219 entries if you haven't driven the new segment–the waypoints haven't changed, so if you've previously driven from Somerset down to Meyersdale (or vice versa) it'll mark the new segment as having been driven.

That is correct.  Thanks for posting this since I did not think to mention it here.

[1995hoo]

For those of you who are Travel Mapping members, take note that you'll need to edit your US-219 entries if you haven't driven the new segment–the waypoints haven't changed, so if you've previously driven from Somerset down to Meyersdale (or vice versa) it'll mark the new segment as having been driven.

That is correct.  Thanks for posting this since I did not think to mention it here.

I discovered it quite by accident–I've been thinking about a weekend trip to Toronto at some point and I looked at Travel Mapping to see which routes I haven't clinched, and that's when I noticed the line on the new road. My data will remain incorrect for another month because I'll wait until after our Christmas trip to submit all my updates at one time.

[wphiii]

I suppose the question would then become the best way to get around Somerset, because when I look at the map it occurs to me that going from the south to Seven Springs the new road may not save you any time at all depending on where you turn west.

I'd get off the new 219 segment at Mud Pike and take that road all the way to New Centerville where you can pick up County Line Rd to Seven Springs. Very sparse traffic on Mud Pike, and some good straightaways for passing if need be.

I can't definitively say that this would be appreciably faster than taking the 70 the whole way, especially since between Salisbury and Meyersdale 219 can still get rough if there are trucks about, but Breezewood sucks, the Turnpike sucks, and paying for the Turnpike sucks, so it'd be worth it in my book, regardless. (And there isn't really an efficient way to get from the Turnpike to Seven Springs, anyway, so my best guess is it'd end up being a wash at worst).

Unrelated: I had the chance to drive the new segment from south to north earlier this week. One thing that stood out to me was a lack of Turnpike guidance, which I felt is concerning since that connection is not easy or obvious. I took 219 all the way up to PA 281 just to be sure, and saw no indication anywhere of how to get to the Turnpike. Is this something that should/will be remedied in the near future?

I still prefer my usual route of Berlin --> PA 160 --> Cumberland, which I took on the way back, and noticed the 219 markers were still up all along the former route. Going to be interesting to see if the new segment makes a tangible difference in traffic on 160.

[Mapmikey]

Unrelated: I had the chance to drive the new segment from south to north earlier this week. One thing that stood out to me was a lack of Turnpike guidance, which I felt is concerning since that connection is not easy or obvious. I took 219 all the way up to PA 281 just to be sure, and saw no indication anywhere of how to get to the Turnpike. Is this something that should/will be remedied in the near future?

The guidance is to use the next exit up to PA 601 - https://goo.gl/maps/Rrg5vmRcgCR2 - which is twice as far and nearly twice as long for time per Google as compared to using PA 281 and Pleasant Ave.

[PAHighways]

The PA 601 connector has always been signed first for the Turnpike and second for 601 and to 985.

There is a Turnpike marker with a "3 MILES" auxiliary sign where northbound 219 used to turn onto the expressway southeast of Somerset.  From that point via old 219, 31, and North Pleasant Avenue, you'll hit the Turnpike access road.

On a side note, Google now acknowledges the new alignment when routing instead of the old route and/or the Garrett Shortcut between Meyersdale and Somerset.

SM-G965U

[Roadsguy]

On a side note, Google now acknowledges the new alignment when routing instead of the old route and/or the Garrett Shortcut between Meyersdale and Somerset.

Though there's still a hole in the southbound lanes at the northern end of the new expressway. They haven't actually moved 219 onto it either.

Let's see how long it takes them to actually notice and fix these. Their update of the Monroe Expressway down in NC is equally bad, though that isn't quite routeable yet.