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[Alex]

Has anyone seen a map that shows Interstate 178 in Allentown besides the New Jersey page of the Rand McNally atlases in the 1960s?

[PAHighways]

PennDOT/PennDOH maps never showed the alignment, even the mid-1960s editions where they showed all future alignments.  However, it did have an exit list in the margins, but of course it was blank.

[PAHighways]

My apologies for my responses to Alex's questions being too dull.

Since I didn't see them listed, I guess 95 and 99 would stay put.

[Alex]

Express E-ZPass coming to I-80, I-78 bridges

Associated Press • September 23, 2009

PHILLIPSBURG, N.J. — Express E-ZPass lanes will be constructed on the I-80 and I-78 bridges over the Delaware River.

E-ZPass motorists can pay tolls at higher speeds on their way to Pennsylvania's Pocono Mountains and Lehigh Valley.

The I-80 bridge carried an average of 53,900 vehicles per day last year. There were an average of 56,100 vehicles a day last year on the I-78 span.

Western New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania are among the fastest-growing areas in the region. Traffic at the toll plazas can come to a standstill in the summer.

The express lanes are expected to be in place by Memorial Day next year.

[PAHighways]

PennDOT Reduces Number of Deteriorating Bridges

[froggie]

What's not mentioned is that it was done largely on the backs of Turnpike users, with some stimulus money thrown in...(the stimulus money was mentioned...PTC's "rent payments" weren't)

[PAHighways]

DRJTBC Awards Construction Contract for Delaware Water Gap Toll Bridge ORT Project

[Roadgeek Adam]

DRJTBC Awards Construction Contract for Delaware Water Gap Toll Bridge ORT Project

Yay, more tolls with EZ Pass - Its nice to see the work the guy I am working with in action. For anyone who's curious, I am working on a dedicated plaque at the Portland-Columbia Pedestrian Bridge in honor of its 50+ year bridge tender (during the covered bridge era). Plans are in the works with the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission.

[Alex]

Found this on Google's Timeline, it indicates that signage for U.S. 122 was taken down on May 13, 1963:

"State Plans to Start Removal of Route 122 Signs"

Winkler listed several reasons for the changes. He said one reason is that traffic numbers can be assigned to the interchanges of Interstate 180 from Morgantown to Reading. Another is that the state desires to eliminate dual signing of nunbered routes and to consolidate traffic routes.

In addition, Winkler said, the state desires to eliminate any U.S. numbered routes that lie wholly within the state and are under 300 miles in length. This elimination is in line with federal policy, and the federal government granted the state permission to make the changes, he added.

Two sign crews consisting of 12 men will make the changes.

[agentsteel53]

alas, no picture.  but hey, cash when I need it! 

[jemacedo9]

US 15 / I-99 Steam Valley upgrade is complete...

[Michael in Philly]

US 15 / I-99 Steam Valley upgrade is complete...

I don't know where Steam Valley is.  But does this mean that 99 is now signed north of Williamsport?  If so, must check it out some time....

[froggie]

Steam Valley is north of Williamsport.  I don't think it means I-99 is signed.  Just that one of the checklist items preventing PennDOT from signing it is done.

[PAHighways]

US 15 / I-99 Steam Valley upgrade is complete...

I don't know where Steam Valley is.  But does this mean that 99 is now signed north of Williamsport?  If so, must check it out some time....

It's basically where PA 184 and US 15 intersect in Lycoming County and no, it is not signed as I-99.

I was just on a piece of US 15 in Tioga County a few weeks back, and the assemblies just have US 15 shields.  There are no spaces for an I-99 shield as there were on the US 220 and US 322 assemblies in Centre County before it was extended to Musser Lane.

[LeftyJR]

US 15 / I-99 Steam Valley upgrade is complete...

I don't know where Steam Valley is.  But does this mean that 99 is now signed north of Williamsport?  If so, must check it out some time....

It's basically where PA 184 and US 15 intersect in Lycoming County and no, it is not signed as I-99.

I was just on a piece of US 15 in Tioga County a few weeks back, and the assemblies just have US 15 shields.  There are no spaces for an I-99 shield as there were on the US 220 and US 322 assemblies in Centre County before it was extended to Musser Lane.

Are they still holding out hope of finishing the three short "missing links" first?  Who knows...

- Fixed quote. -- rmf67

[Alps]

From Jeff Kitsko:

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/warrior/mc-road-warrior-roundabouts-20120122,0,7159622.column
PennDOT turns to roundabouts on Route 222 in Berks

... This will make me all the more anxious to avoid ever following US 222. The road really needs to be four lanes divided continuously from Reading to Allentown, instead of in pieces with 2-lane road between. There's no way a roundabout will improve traffic because it's already so miserable, and with a high percentage of trucks. At least PA 73 wasn't chosen, but I fear this will lock down the other two intersections. When volumes are above a certain level, you're supposed to go to signals and not roundabouts.

[roadman65]

I am anxious to know if anyone ever clinched US 6 in Pennsylvania?  I have only been on it between the Delaware River and Clark's Summit before the freeway was constructed between Carbondale and Scranton, so it was the current Business US 6 I have been on there.  Anyway, always thought that someday I would clinch the rest of the route in PA.  My dad told me that in the pre I-80 days he drove it to get to Ohio and said it was a good road to use then.

He especially bragged about some straight sections of highway with long hills in where you see where you are going to be in five minuets and when you get there you see in the rear view where you just were type of thing.  I encountered that on GA 17 from Wrens to I-20 in Georgia where you have a long dip down and another returning upward lasting well over a couple of miles, so I know what he meant.

We do not have many threads where people talk too much about roads clinched lately except when someone here needs traveling advice and want to know if he is choosing the right road to take for convenience. I was just curious to know if anyone has ended up driving all of US 6 as whole or in sections that added up withing the Keystone State.

[Alps]

I am anxious to know if anyone ever clinched US 6 in Pennsylvania?  I have only been on it between the Delaware River and Clark's Summit before the freeway was constructed between Carbondale and Scranton, so it was the current Business US 6 I have been on there.  Anyway, always thought that someday I would clinch the rest of the route in PA.  My dad told me that in the pre I-80 days he drove it to get to Ohio and said it was a good road to use then.

He especially bragged about some straight sections of highway with long hills in where you see where you are going to be in five minuets and when you get there you see in the rear view where you just were type of thing.  I encountered that on GA 17 from Wrens to I-20 in Georgia where you have a long dip down and another returning upward lasting well over a couple of miles, so I know what he meant.

We do not have many threads where people talk too much about roads clinched lately except when someone here needs traveling advice and want to know if he is choosing the right road to take for convenience. I was just curious to know if anyone has ended up driving all of US 6 as whole or in sections that added up withing the Keystone State.

I've been on all of US 6. It's fucking dreadful. Never again. I don't know that there's anywhere you can see 5 minutes forward/back. You can on US 30, the other dreadfully slow road in PA. I'm never heading west anywhere between I-80 and I-86 again.

[empirestate]

By contrast, I find US 6 delightful across PA, and I've done many sections of it, though not quite the whole thing, probably.

There used to be a website, Discovering the 6, about clinching the highway nationwide, but I think it's gone now.

[hbelkins]

I've been on all of US 6. It's fucking dreadful. Never again. I don't know that there's anywhere you can see 5 minutes forward/back. You can on US 30, the other dreadfully slow road in PA. I'm never heading west anywhere between I-80 and I-86 again.

I've driven portions of US 6 in Pennsylvania. Towanda to Wellsboro is a lot like parts of central or northeastern Kentucky. From Wellsboro west to Coudersport is a neat drive with some long straight, flat stretches. I think this is the "Grand Canyon of the North" section. Port Allegany to Kane is like the portion from Towanda to Wellsboro, rolling to hilly.

In retrospect, I guess I've driven most of US 6 in Pennsylvania. I don't have anything west of Kane, and I lack the sections between Port Allegany and Coudersport, Towanda and Dickson City, and Honesdale to Milford. It's an OK road, not really a through route, but I wouldn't be as critical of it as Steve was. It's not dissimilar to a lot of roads in my neck of the woods.

[qguy]

I grew up in Honesdale, so I'm a little biased (OK, a lot biased I guess), but I've always enjoyed the stretch from Carbondale to Honesdale to Hawley. Tons of history (the gravity railroad alignment criss-crossing the road between Carbondale and Honesdale and the D&H canal winding along parts of the road between Honesdale and Hawley, for example), rolling, twisting roadway (perhaps too twisting), many stretches of old alignment diverging and converging, great little mom-and-pop stores and cafés in town when you want to stretch the legs…

[Alps]

In retrospect, I guess I've driven most of US 6 in Pennsylvania. I don't have anything west of Kane, and I lack the sections between Port Allegany and Coudersport, Towanda and Dickson City, and Honesdale to Milford. It's an OK road, not really a through route, but I wouldn't be as critical of it as Steve was. It's not dissimilar to a lot of roads in my neck of the woods.

My main problem with it is that I was lucky to go 45 mph most of the time on open stretches thanks to the amount of slow cars and trucks that use the road, especially 18-wheelers who think they've discovered some wonderful secret to stay off of the relatively free-flowing I-80 and I-86. You say it's "not really a through route," I say "you will need an entire day to go 300 miles."

[empirestate]

In retrospect, I guess I've driven most of US 6 in Pennsylvania. I don't have anything west of Kane, and I lack the sections between Port Allegany and Coudersport, Towanda and Dickson City, and Honesdale to Milford. It's an OK road, not really a through route, but I wouldn't be as critical of it as Steve was. It's not dissimilar to a lot of roads in my neck of the woods.

My main problem with it is that I was lucky to go 45 mph most of the time on open stretches thanks to the amount of slow cars and trucks that use the road, especially 18-wheelers who think they've discovered some wonderful secret to stay off of the relatively free-flowing I-80 and I-86. You say it's "not really a through route," I say "you will need an entire day to go 300 miles."

No, you definitely wouldn't use it to get across the state quickly. You'd use it to see that part of Pennsylvania. As for pre-Interstate days, I'm sure it was as good a way across as anything else, but that's relative to the fact that one didn't just cross entire states in a matter of hours then.

[Alps]

In retrospect, I guess I've driven most of US 6 in Pennsylvania. I don't have anything west of Kane, and I lack the sections between Port Allegany and Coudersport, Towanda and Dickson City, and Honesdale to Milford. It's an OK road, not really a through route, but I wouldn't be as critical of it as Steve was. It's not dissimilar to a lot of roads in my neck of the woods.

My main problem with it is that I was lucky to go 45 mph most of the time on open stretches thanks to the amount of slow cars and trucks that use the road, especially 18-wheelers who think they've discovered some wonderful secret to stay off of the relatively free-flowing I-80 and I-86. You say it's "not really a through route," I say "you will need an entire day to go 300 miles."

No, you definitely wouldn't use it to get across the state quickly. You'd use it to see that part of Pennsylvania. As for pre-Interstate days, I'm sure it was as good a way across as anything else, but that's relative to the fact that one didn't just cross entire states in a matter of hours then.

I'd recommend any number of parallel state routes then - can't be much slower, definitely more scenic because YOU'RE IN FRONT.

[empirestate]

No, you definitely wouldn't use it to get across the state quickly. You'd use it to see that part of Pennsylvania. As for pre-Interstate days, I'm sure it was as good a way across as anything else, but that's relative to the fact that one didn't just cross entire states in a matter of hours then.

I'd recommend any number of parallel state routes then - can't be much slower, definitely more scenic because YOU'RE IN FRONT.

Not a whole lot of those to choose from, but I agree they're worth looking into for scenic purposes. In fact, I'm fond of quadrant routes because they interfere the least with the landscape, have little traffic, and are lots of fun to drive!

That said, I guess I've just had better luck with US 6...some slow traffic, sure, but at least as much of that is RV's and powder-blue Mercury Sables (geezermobiles) as big-rigs, and what truck traffic there is seems mostly of the local variety, hauling loads of gravel or milk from the crusher or dairy farm, so it eventually turns off. (Only to be replaced by a lumbering tractor...)

I'd put it this way: US 6 across PA is mostly an un-upgraded US highway (unlike most of US 22, for example), so while it doesn't move traffic as efficiently as an upgraded highway, it offers a more appealing experience of the landscape it traverses as a result. And while it's far enough from both I-80 and I-86 to attract its share of local traffic, it's close enough to them that it doesn't get much long-haul use. So given all that, I'd say conditions are about what you'd expect them to be.