Looking for routing suggestions on getting from US 48 (Corridor H) in Grant County, WV, at the intersection with Knobley Road, to the intersection of the PA Turnpike and I-283/PA 283 near Harrisburg, PA. Prefer something reasonably quick that involves as little of Virginia or of I-81 as possible, and would prefer to avoid the Turnpike if I can, and also would like to stay off of US 15 north of Frederick, MD.
My goal is to clinch the new section of Corridor H, and then from there get to PA 283 as fast as I can while trying to stay off routes I've already driven.
One possibility is Patterson Creek Road north from Corridor H -- which is signed as "To Route 50" -- to US 220 north through Keyser to Cumberland, then I-68 east to US 522 north to the Turnpike. Comments? How's the county route in West Virginia, and how is that stretch of US 522?
Another possibility is to backtrack on US 48 to WV 93 and then take that to US 50 to WV 972 to US 220.
Quote from: hbelkins on November 29, 2012, 09:34:05 PM
Another possibility is to backtrack on US 48 to WV 93 and then take that to US 50 to WV 972 to US 220.
I just did WV 93 from US 48 to US 50, earlier this month. Reasonably straight and fast, plus it puts you on US 50 east of its long and steep downgrades. I don't remember how was US 50 between WV 93 and WV 972 -- did that segment long ago. From WV 972 into Maryland to hook up with I-68, pretty smooth sailing, with slowdowns in one town along the way.
If you take WV 42, from US 50, to WV 93 and US 48, that will take you around the above-mentioned downhill on US 50, plus you'll get to see some construction for future US 48 segments. But check the weather, when I went earlier this month there was snow on the ground and shoulders around Mt. Storm, though the travel lanes were clear.
Not sure how I will be approaching the intersection of WV 42 and WV 93 near Bismarck yet. Depends on if I stay Thursday night in Weston/Elkins or in the Clarksburg/Fairmont area.
I've driven all of US 50 and US 220 in West Virginia and Maryland, and I've also done US 220 from Cumberland to Bedford several times. The PA Turnpike from Bedford to Harrisburg was OK the first couple of times I drove it, but now there is nothing particularly intriguing about it.
I prefer to stay off I-81 because I've driven it several times too, and I have to hassle with taking down my radar detector when entering Virginia and then putting it back up when I leave.
My goal here is to drive the new portion of US 48 and then get to the intersection of the PA Turnpike and I-283/PA 283 as quickly as possible, preferably not driving a familiar route. From there I plan to take PA 283 to US 222 and then clinch I-176.
potential suggestion:
using MD 36, MD 35, PA 96 then US 30 east as far as you want....
I've never driven any of that except US 30 from Bedford to Breezewood which is wide open and easy...
Mapmikey
I agree with Mapmikey about PA 96. It's a nice change of pace from US 220 between Cumberland and Bedford.
I've about decided to use either Patterson Creek Road or WV 93 up to US 50, and then go up 220 through Keyser to Cumberland. From there I may take the Maryland routes and PA 96 north, then US 30 through Bedford to Breezewood and then bite the bullet with the Turnpike. From Breezewood US 30 veers off to the south, so I'd probably be better off using the Turnpike to get me to the Harrisburg area. Zzzzzzzzz on that long straight stretch east of the mountains.
Quote from: hbelkins on December 04, 2012, 11:23:20 AM
I've about decided to use either Patterson Creek Road or WV 93 up to US 50, and then go up 220 through Keyser to Cumberland. From there I may take the Maryland routes and PA 96 north, then US 30 through Bedford to Breezewood and then bite the bullet with the Turnpike. From Breezewood US 30 veers off to the south, so I'd probably be better off using the Turnpike to get me to the Harrisburg area. Zzzzzzzzz on that long straight stretch east of the mountains.
You could also use PA 274 or PA 641 to more closely parallel the Tpk east of US 522...
Mapmikey
I ended up taking the new portion of US 48 to a point east of Knobley Road, then turned around and drove back westward to WV 93. Then I took WV 93 north to US 50, then WV 972 to US 220 into Maryland. Took MD 53 and a couple of connecting routes to reach Alt. US 40, then MD 36 to MD 35 to PA 96 north. That was good for a one-time change of pace, but on future trips I'll probably stick to US 220. Too many slowdowns and the road is not as fast as US 220. However, I might use it next year on any trips in that direction because a major rehab project is going to start on US 68 through Cumberland next year that will probably really cause traffic to get FUBARed.
From PA 96 it was PA 31 to US 30, and I stayed on 30 to Breezewood, where I got on the turnpike going east to Harrisburg. There's really no other good route from Breezewood to Harrisburg that doesn't involve going too far out of the way to the south.
Next time try using US 522 from Fort Littleton North to PA 641 East. You will have to go over a couple of mountains, then through farming country to Carlisle where you can get I 81 or 76. Its pretty much all 2 lane. Its about 60 miles vs 45 on I 76.