PA Turnpike News

[Flyer78]

The welcome center on I-81N has a taste NY section with a variety of items for self-service checkout.

[vdeane]

Both the one on I-495 and the one on I-90 are to be similar to the I-81 one and the new ones on the Thruway and Taconic.  I-90 is to be a NY welcome center.

[cl94]

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

[74/171FAN]

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

AFAIK, all of them.  My EZPASS from VA does get them.

[signalman]

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

Yes.  The PA Turnpike gives the E-Z Pass discount to all tag holders; regardless of what agency issued the tag.  Even with the discount, it's painful to use though.

[cl94]

It's no more painful than what the MTA or Port Authority charges. PTC will get less from me in one trip than PANYNJ would for one crossing.

[cpzilliacus]

It's no more painful than what the MTA or Port Authority charges. PTC will get less from me in one trip than PANYNJ would for one crossing.

Though at some point in the fairly near future, everyone will be paying the ETC rate (or an upcharge for no transponder) on the Pennsylvania Turnpike system.  I would not be surprised at all to see the PTC decide to implement time-of-day tolling on various parts of the network, perhaps especially around Philadelphia - more to increase revenue than to manage traffic, though it would presumably be "sold" as a traffic management effort.

[vdeane]

Wouldn't be surprised if the toll by plate rate is the current cash rate.

[cl94]

Wouldn't be surprised if the toll by plate rate is the current cash rate.

That's what it is at the new Delaware River "plaza". Of course, who knows what they'll do on the ticket system.

[mariethefoxy]

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

Yes.  The PA Turnpike gives the E-Z Pass discount to all tag holders; regardless of what agency issued the tag.  Even with the discount, it's painful to use though.

Tell me about it, costed me near $30 round trip on my trip to Pittsburgh, going there i entered in at Carlisle and going home I exited at Bedford/I-99. The PA Turnpike is one of the most expensive toll roads in the area, without any favors (since I have an TBTA EZPass) the Jersey Turnpike is like 9 bucks from Exit 10 to 1. I shudder to think what the PA Turnpike is gunna cost if they try any wierd time of day tolling.

[jeffandnicole]

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

Yes.  The PA Turnpike gives the E-Z Pass discount to all tag holders; regardless of what agency issued the tag.  Even with the discount, it's painful to use though.

Tell me about it, costed me near $30 round trip on my trip to Pittsburgh, going there i entered in at Carlisle and going home I exited at Bedford/I-99. The PA Turnpike is one of the most expensive toll roads in the area, without any favors (since I have an TBTA EZPass) the Jersey Turnpike is like 9 bucks from Exit 10 to 1. I shudder to think what the PA Turnpike is gunna cost if they try any wierd time of day tolling.

To be fair, you travelled about 270 miles on the PA Turnpike, and about 95 miles on the NJ Turnpike. 

Overall, the PA Turnpike is more expensive per mile, but you also travelled a lot more miles on that road, so the costs are relatively in line with your distance.

[Sykotyk]

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

Yes.  The PA Turnpike gives the E-Z Pass discount to all tag holders; regardless of what agency issued the tag.  Even with the discount, it's painful to use though.

Tell me about it, costed me near $30 round trip on my trip to Pittsburgh, going there i entered in at Carlisle and going home I exited at Bedford/I-99. The PA Turnpike is one of the most expensive toll roads in the area, without any favors (since I have an TBTA EZPass) the Jersey Turnpike is like 9 bucks from Exit 10 to 1. I shudder to think what the PA Turnpike is gunna cost if they try any wierd time of day tolling.

To be fair, you travelled about 270 miles on the PA Turnpike, and about 95 miles on the NJ Turnpike. 

Overall, the PA Turnpike is more expensive per mile, but you also travelled a lot more miles on that road, so the costs are relatively in line with your distance.

PA does have some decent shunpiking routes now.

Ohio (I-76/I-80 interchange) to Cranberry (I-79) is free westbound. Eastbound, a good shunpike is I-80 to I-79 (or I-80 to I-376 to US422 to I-79 OR I-80 to I-680 to US422 to I-79). Though US 422 is more because I live near it and use it and don't consider it a bad route. 80/79 is 31 miles extra, 80/376/422 is 20 miles extra, and 80/680/422/79 is 13 miles extra.

Cranberry (I-79) to Monroeville (I-376) is an obvious easy one, I-79 to I-376. This is only a good shunpike if you're avoiding rush hour. Otherwise downtown and the Squirrel Hill Tunnel can really bug you.

For Pittsburgh (I-376) to Bedford (or Breezewood), would be US22 to I-99. To Breezewood, just follow to US30 east. It's only 16 miles longer to Breezewood. US 22 has some lights, especially east of I-76, though they've done a great job reducing left turns by creating quasi-Jersey Lefts with turnarounds. Blairsville and Ebensburg is a nuisance as both bypasses have lights, despite appearing to freeway bypasses with interchanges at both ends of the towns. I-99 becomes US220 and has a full interchange with US30, but there's a couple of lights just east of Bedford. But, it's free than taking the turnpike to Breezewood.

If you're going Pittsburgh to Harrisburg, the best shunpike is US22 to I-99 to US322. Again, the US22 complaint, and the speed trap/breezewood in Duncannon on US322 is a bit of a pain. Especially to remember it. But, also the two lane (no lights at all) east of State College can be a pain as it has heavy traffic, low speed limit, and a ton of truck traffic. This is only 24 miles longer than the turnpike between Pittsburgh (I-376) and I-283/PA283 east of Harrisburg.

Harrisburg itself has an easy shunpike, I-81 in Carlisle to either I-83 to I-283 or PA581 to I-83 to I-283.

Harrisburg to Philadelphia is relatively good except the god awful stretch east of Lancaster. But, the shunpike is PA283 to Lancaster to US30 to US202 to I-76 just south of the US 422 exit on the turnpike. This is only 1 mile longer. But, you get to deal with the Lancaster-to-Gap(PA41) stretch that can be a PITA when there's heavy traffic. Which seems to be always. But, 283 and a stretch of 30 are freeway and 202 is all freeway.

The only real tough spot to shunpike is from I-476 to New Jersey. Because to stick to freeway means I-76 into Philly to I-676 to I-95 toward Trenton. Either take the loop around, or cut through town. But, it puts you into New Jersey without a toll.

If you're heading somewhere on the NJTP from 7A or south, the better route is to just go through Philadelphia on I-76 and onto I-295.

From Pittsburgh to Philadelphia, it's 25 miles longer to shunpike, you hit some lights on 22 from Monroeville to US119 and a few more in Ebensburg, a 2-lane light-less stretch east of State College, the clusterf*ck through Amish Country east of Lancaster toward Gap (I'm going to guess about 20 lights total), and then freeway all the way to I-76 again after it departs the Turnpike.

Your EZ+Pass toll is $23, the cash toll is $33. And it takes you about an hour longer and about a gallon of gas more to avoid paying even $23. So, $20 for an hour of your time, basically (factoring out the additional gas).

Every time I head east to New Jersey, this would be the way I go if taking I-80 into New Jersey or NYC isn't an option.

[74/171FAN]

Harrisburg to Philadelphia is relatively good except the god awful stretch east of Lancaster. But, the shunpike is PA283 to Lancaster to US30 to US202 to I-76 just south of the US 422 exit on the turnpike. This is only 1 mile longer. But, you get to deal with the Lancaster-to-Gap(PA41) stretch that can be a PITA when there's heavy traffic. Which seems to be always. But, 283 and a stretch of 30 are freeway and 202 is all freeway.

On a side note, the widening of US 202 to 6 lanes out to US 30 should be completed by the end of the year.  However, there are plans to reconstruct the US 30 freeway in the near future.

Also I have used PA 340 to bypass the Gap area.  PA 340 does not have that much traffic between Intercourse and PA 82 (just north of Coatesville.)

[vdeane]

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

Yes.  The PA Turnpike gives the E-Z Pass discount to all tag holders; regardless of what agency issued the tag.  Even with the discount, it's painful to use though.

Tell me about it, costed me near $30 round trip on my trip to Pittsburgh, going there i entered in at Carlisle and going home I exited at Bedford/I-99. The PA Turnpike is one of the most expensive toll roads in the area, without any favors (since I have an TBTA EZPass) the Jersey Turnpike is like 9 bucks from Exit 10 to 1. I shudder to think what the PA Turnpike is gunna cost if they try any wierd time of day tolling.

To be fair, you travelled about 270 miles on the PA Turnpike, and about 95 miles on the NJ Turnpike. 

Overall, the PA Turnpike is more expensive per mile, but you also travelled a lot more miles on that road, so the costs are relatively in line with your distance.

Meanwhile, to get that nine buck charge on the Thruway, you'd have to drive 200 miles!

[cl94]

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

Yes.  The PA Turnpike gives the E-Z Pass discount to all tag holders; regardless of what agency issued the tag.  Even with the discount, it's painful to use though.

Tell me about it, costed me near $30 round trip on my trip to Pittsburgh, going there i entered in at Carlisle and going home I exited at Bedford/I-99. The PA Turnpike is one of the most expensive toll roads in the area, without any favors (since I have an TBTA EZPass) the Jersey Turnpike is like 9 bucks from Exit 10 to 1. I shudder to think what the PA Turnpike is gunna cost if they try any wierd time of day tolling.

To be fair, you travelled about 270 miles on the PA Turnpike, and about 95 miles on the NJ Turnpike. 

Overall, the PA Turnpike is more expensive per mile, but you also travelled a lot more miles on that road, so the costs are relatively in line with your distance.

Meanwhile, to get that nine buck charge on the Thruway, you'd have to drive 200 miles!

About right. The toll from 24 to 48A is roughly $11 and that's ~250 miles.

[rickmastfan67]

Ohio (I-76/I-80 interchange) to Cranberry (I-79) is free westbound.

Only in PA is it free.  Still have to pay a toll in Ohio.

[Roadrunner75]

Harrisburg to Philadelphia is relatively good except the god awful stretch east of Lancaster. But, the shunpike is PA283 to Lancaster to US30 to US202 to I-76 just south of the US 422 exit on the turnpike. This is only 1 mile longer. But, you get to deal with the Lancaster-to-Gap(PA41) stretch that can be a PITA when there's heavy traffic. Which seems to be always. But, 283 and a stretch of 30 are freeway and 202 is all freeway.

On a side note, the widening of US 202 to 6 lanes out to US 30 should be completed by the end of the year.  However, there are plans to reconstruct the US 30 freeway in the near future.

Also I have used PA 340 to bypass the Gap area.  PA 340 does not have that much traffic between Intercourse and PA 82 (just north of Coatesville.)

I just did this stretch of 30 EB today, coming back to NJ.  The project at Gap to separate the EB and WB lanes of 30 is in full swing, with new signals going up and the new WB roadway looking fairly close to completion, seen here:
https://www.google.com/maps/@39.993702,-76.0251194,17z/data=!3m1!1e3?force=lite

I'm glad they're finally looking at improvements on the Coatesville/Downingtown bypass segment - I remember when they built the Exton bypass section to 202.  Maybe someday in my lifetime they'll link this to the Lancaster bypass (and bypass the 'bypass' of York), making my shunpiking even better.  I'm gonna have to give 340 a shot again - it's been a long time.

On the way out via the PA Turnpike (back on topic), I noticed they have the 70 speed limit signs as far east as the Willow Grove area now.  I'm a little surprised with this - I thought for sure they wouldn't go to 70 until they were west of Valley Forge. 

[akotchi]

Harrisburg to Philadelphia is relatively good except the god awful stretch east of Lancaster. But, the shunpike is PA283 to Lancaster to US30 to US202 to I-76 just south of the US 422 exit on the turnpike. This is only 1 mile longer. But, you get to deal with the Lancaster-to-Gap(PA41) stretch that can be a PITA when there's heavy traffic. Which seems to be always. But, 283 and a stretch of 30 are freeway and 202 is all freeway.

On a side note, the widening of US 202 to 6 lanes out to US 30 should be completed by the end of the year.  However, there are plans to reconstruct the US 30 freeway in the near future.

Also I have used PA 340 to bypass the Gap area.  PA 340 does not have that much traffic between Intercourse and PA 82 (just north of Coatesville.)

I just did this stretch of 30 EB today, coming back to NJ.  The project at Gap to separate the EB and WB lanes of 30 is in full swing, with new signals going up and the new WB roadway looking fairly close to completion, seen here:
https://www.google.com/maps/@39.993702,-76.0251194,17z/data=!3m1!1e3?force=lite

I'm glad they're finally looking at improvements on the Coatesville/Downingtown bypass segment - I remember when they built the Exton bypass section to 202.  Maybe someday in my lifetime they'll link this to the Lancaster bypass (and bypass the 'bypass' of York), making my shunpiking even better.  I'm gonna have to give 340 a shot again - it's been a long time.

On the way out via the PA Turnpike (back on topic), I noticed they have the 70 speed limit signs as far east as the Willow Grove area now.  I'm a little surprised with this - I thought for sure they wouldn't go to 70 until they were west of Valley Forge. 

70 MPH even goes out to Bensalem, but no further due to construction and the new mainline toll barrier immediately to the east of there.

[vdeane]

Didn't the PTC just elect to change all their 65 mph zones to 70 mph instead of having them co-exist the way PennDOT did?

Quick question that I know has been answered here before: does PTC give the E-ZPass discount to all tags, or just to Pennsylvania tags? I'm taking a little road trip later this week and I'd like to know how many limbs I'll have to sell to pay their outrageous tolls.

Yes.  The PA Turnpike gives the E-Z Pass discount to all tag holders; regardless of what agency issued the tag.  Even with the discount, it's painful to use though.

Tell me about it, costed me near $30 round trip on my trip to Pittsburgh, going there i entered in at Carlisle and going home I exited at Bedford/I-99. The PA Turnpike is one of the most expensive toll roads in the area, without any favors (since I have an TBTA EZPass) the Jersey Turnpike is like 9 bucks from Exit 10 to 1. I shudder to think what the PA Turnpike is gunna cost if they try any wierd time of day tolling.

To be fair, you travelled about 270 miles on the PA Turnpike, and about 95 miles on the NJ Turnpike. 

Overall, the PA Turnpike is more expensive per mile, but you also travelled a lot more miles on that road, so the costs are relatively in line with your distance.

Meanwhile, to get that nine buck charge on the Thruway, you'd have to drive 200 miles!

About right. The toll from 24 to 48A is roughly $11 and that's ~250 miles.

I was using the $9.07 toll rate for the 202 mile journey from I-87 to I-490 that I take MANY times per year for every single family gathering.

[qguy]

Didn't the PTC just elect to change all their 65 mph zones to 70 mph instead of having them co-exist the way PennDOT did?

Yes. The signs started going up the day after the PTC press release on 2 May 2016. Here's a link to the press release (which also lists the small areas which remain at 55 mph):

https://www.paturnpike.com/press/2016/20160502143015.htm

[MASTERNC]

Didn't the PTC just elect to change all their 65 mph zones to 70 mph instead of having them co-exist the way PennDOT did?

Yes. The signs started going up the day after the PTC press release on 2 May 2016. Here's a link to the press release (which also lists the small areas which remain at 55 mph):

https://www.paturnpike.com/press/2016/20160502143015.htm

There's still one 65 MPH sign - westbound at the US 1 interchange (a temporary sign at the end of the construction zone).

[Roadrunner75]

Didn't the PTC just elect to change all their 65 mph zones to 70 mph instead of having them co-exist the way PennDOT did?

Yes. The signs started going up the day after the PTC press release on 2 May 2016. Here's a link to the press release (which also lists the small areas which remain at 55 mph):

https://www.paturnpike.com/press/2016/20160502143015.htm

There's still one 65 MPH sign - westbound at the US 1 interchange (a temporary sign at the end of the construction zone).

I noticed that too on my way WB on Friday.  I thought the first 70 MPH sign I encountered was more toward Willow Grove but I might have missed one.

[noelbotevera]

From the people of the NJ Turnpike video, I present to you the PA Turnpike. Not sure what it's dated but it looks like around 1941. Now learn about pavement.

[MASTERNC]

Didn't the PTC just elect to change all their 65 mph zones to 70 mph instead of having them co-exist the way PennDOT did?

Yes. The signs started going up the day after the PTC press release on 2 May 2016. Here's a link to the press release (which also lists the small areas which remain at 55 mph):

https://www.paturnpike.com/press/2016/20160502143015.htm

There's still one 65 MPH sign - westbound at the US 1 interchange (a temporary sign at the end of the construction zone).

I noticed that too on my way WB on Friday.  I thought the first 70 MPH sign I encountered was more toward Willow Grove but I might have missed one.

I think there was a 70 MPH sign either before after the curve west of the US 1 exit.

[Roadsguy]

Even after the widening, there's still a lot of unused pavement space on the Northeast Extension at the Mid-County Interchange. Does anyone know what it is or was supposed to be used for?