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2011 Official Turnpike Map

Today, the ribbon-cutting event for the latest section of Mon-Fayette Expressway occurred. Not only did I pick up several free bottles of water compliments of the Turnpike Commission, I picked up something I haven’t seen in years:  a new 2011 official Turnpike map.

The PTC’s “belt-tightening” in recent years led to them not printing a map. It is evident by looking at this one, as it is much smaller than its 2004 ancestor. The reason for this change is in a note below the legend:

To conserve natural and fiscal resources, our Travel Guide and Map is half the size of earlier editions. The new size also responds to a shift in how travelers — in an age of online maps and GPS devices — use printed maps today.

In addition, the map is not a PennDOT official. The Turnpike System is not highlighted in green, with a white-on-green Keystone shield denoting the route number. That was the standard since the 1980s.  It appears with these two changes that the Turnpike map is returning to its ones from the 1960s and 1970s, which were printed by Rand McNally and General Drafting.

The main map of Pennsylvania features images of postcards of the Turnpike at the top of the map. A mention of the 70 years of the Turnpike is in the corner, the milestone celebrated the year before.  One change I like is that the background of the border states are not pink or purple as they were on the 2004 map.

The back side of the map still includes information on E-ZPass and commercial trucking regulations.  There is toll information but just like the first run of tickets this year, there is no fare schedule. There are strip maps for the system. However, the insets of cities which the Turnpike passes through are no longer.  The following are changes since the 2004 edition:

Allegheny County/Washington County
PA Turnpike 576 completed between Interstate 376 and US 22

PA Turnpike 576 shown as completed on the 2011 official turnpike map

Beaver County/Lawrence County
Interstate 376 replaced PA Turnpike 60

Interstate 376 replaces PA Turnpike 60 on the 2011 official turnpike map

Fayette County
PA Turnpike 43 completed from Exit 15 to Exit 22

Fayette County/Washington County
PA Turnpike 43 under construction from US 40 to PA 88

PA Turnpike 43 completed from Exit 15 to Exit 22 and under construction from there to PA 88 on the 2011 official turnpike map

The Turnpike Commission has PDF versions of the strip maps for the mainline, PA Turnpike 376, and PA Turnpike 66; PA Turnpike 43; and PA Turnpike 576 available at their website.

The cover of the 2011 official Turnpike map features three postcards of various sections from the original Turnpike, with the logo of the 70th anniversary in the middle.

Cover of the 2011 Turnpike Travel Guide and Map
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Follow Us on Foursquare!

Global Positioning Satellites, or GPS, has revolutionized the world.  Now with the help of GPS-enabled devices, being lost is quickly becoming obsolete.  Not only can people be found who were lost and possibly injured in the deepest wooded area, but drivers can find that hidden shortcut, and walkers and joggers can record their latest achievement.

One of the uses of GPS chips has been inclusion in cell phones over the past decade.  Aside from being able to locate you in the event of an emergency when calling 911, it can help navigate unfamiliar territory.  The advent of the smartphone has brought apps utilizing the GPS chip such as Google Maps and Foursquare.

“What is Foursquare?” you may ask.  It is a social networking platform like Twitter and Facebook, but unlike those websites, Foursquare gets you away from your computer and out exploring.  Users can “check in” to various locations from their cell phones, which earn them points and badges.  Check in more times at one place, and you will become “Mayor” of that location which might earn you a perk.

Foursquare is about where Twitter was two years ago.  It is on the cusp of being the “next big thing” in the world of Web 2.0.  Just as organizations jumped on the Twitter bandwagon, they are jumping, or I should say checking in, on the Foursquare bandwagon.  VisitPA (the Department of Tourism) has three badges, PA Retail Polka, PA 4 Score & 7, and PA Shooflyer, that users can earn by checking in at certain places around the Commonwealth.

Now Pennsylvania Highways has joined them, and Washington State Department of Transportation and Missouri Department of Transportation, with a Foursquare page.  It will be used to give tips on highway-related check in points such as the Squirrel Hill Tunnel or one of the Turnpike interchanges, but only read them on the website or let a passenger read them to you.  Perhaps a badge or two will be offered if Foursquare permits it in the future, but before you ask, there will not be a “Pothole Badge.”

https://foursquare.com/pahighways

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2010 Official Road Map

Today, I stopped at the welcome center on Interstate 70 at the Maryland state line in Warfordsburg and picked up a copy of the 2010 official road map.  I am surprised PennDOT even bothered to print one this late in the year that isn’t a “B” version, especially since there will be a new governor come Tuesday.  These are the changes since the 2009 edition, all of which involve the extension of Interstate 376:

Allegheny County/Pittsburgh Inset
Interstate 376 extended west beyond I-279 to multiplex with US 22/US 30 and replace PA 60
Interstate Business Loop 376 replaced Business PA 60

Interstate 376 extended and Interstate Business Loop 376 signed on the 2009 official road map.

Beaver County/Lawrence County/New Castle Inset
Interstate 376 replaced PA 60 and PA Turnpike 60

Interstate 376 replaces PA 60 and PA Turnpike 60 on the 2009 official road map.

Mercer County
Interstate 376 replaced PA 60
PA 760 replaced PA 60 from I-80 to Sharon

Interstate 376 replaces PA 60 and PA 760 signed in Mercer County.

Those are all the changes to the 2010 official road map. In addition, there are two mentions of the new 511 system:  one on the back cover under the list of welcome centers and another at the top next to the legend.

Rarely do I find an error on the official maps, but this year there is a blatant one near the junction of the Penn-Lincoln Parkway and PA 60 west of Pittsburgh.  A US 22/US 322 shield is located where there should be, and last year was, a US 22/US 30 shield.

It has the same dimensions as the previous year’s. However, this year’s cover features a view of Johnstown from the Inclined Plane station above the city in Westmont.

Cover of the 2010 Department of Transportation map
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2009 Official Road Map

This past weekend, I stopped at the welcome center on Interstate 70 at the Maryland state line in Warfordsburg. In doing so, I picked up a copy of the 2009 official road map. Here are the changes since the 2007 editions:

Berks County/Chester County
PA 82 removed between Elverson and Birdsboro

PA 82 shown truncated on the 2009 official road map.

Blair County/Centre County/State College Inset
Interstate 99 completed from Bald Eagle to State College in addition to being signed from there to Interstate 80

Interstate 99 is completed between Bald Eagle and State College and signed from there to Interstate 80 on the 2009 official road map.

Fayette County
PA Turnpike 43 completed between Exit 15 and Exit 22 and shown under construction between Exit 22 and PA 88

PA Turnpike 43 open between Uniontown and Brownsville, and under construction around the latter.

Lehigh County/Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Inset
US 222/Trexlertown Bypass completed from PA 100 to Interstate 78

US 222/Trexlertown Bypass completed between PA 100 and Interstate 78.

Tioga County
US 15 finished from PA 287 to New York and PA 287 extended further along old US 15 to Lawrenceville

US 15 completed in Tioga County on the 2009 official road map.

New Castle Inset
US 224 extended further than US 422/PA 60 eastward on State Street and Falls Street

US 224 extended in Lawrence County on the 2009 official road map.

In conclusion, those are all the changes to the 2009 official road map. It has the same dimensions as the previous year’s; however, this year’s cover is of an Amish buggy driving on one of the newly designated Civil War Trails. You can view the map at PennDOT’s GIS page.

If the Departments of Transportation and Tourism would have waited, they could have given a shout-out to our three professional sports teams that won championships in the past year. The North Carolina Department of Transportation did that for the Carolina Hurricanes on the cover of their 2007 map.

Cover of the 2009 official road map.
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Social Network With Us

There is a lot of talk these days about the newest revolution on the Internet: Social Networking.  It started with this blog, which I use to write not just about the roads across the Commonwealth, but musings about Pennsylvania.  However, other means of social networking have come along since blogs were all the rage.  I began to think how these new tools could benefit Pennsylvania Highways.  So today, on the ninth anniversary of when I purchased the pahighways.com domain, I created a couple new avenues of communication, so you can social network with us by tweeting, liking, or watching Pennsylvania Highways.

Social network with us via Twitter, Facebook, or YouTube.

Twitter
The new cultural buzzword.  Everyone seems to be twittering, from Oprah to Senator John McCain.  I’ve seen other Twitter pages such as CNN’s and the Washington State Department of Transportation’s and thought how it could work for my site.  PennDOT and the PTC do have a system where people can receive text messages; however, it doesn’t have the immediacy of a Twitter post.  So using the WSDOT “template,” I created an account that will not only be used for updates to the site, but news items pertaining to the highway system.

https://twitter.com/pahighways

Facebook
Another phenomenon that seems to have come out of nowhere and taken the Internet by storm is Facebook.  It seems that everyone from 9 to 90 has a Facebook page, even people’s pets!  So I figured why not create a Pennsylvania Highways presence on this platform as well.  Posts will include news articles, website updates, announcements of upcoming road enthusiast meets, and other events.

https://www.facebook.com/pahighways

YouTube
No doubt you have spent time on this site. Probably watching a clip of a skateboarding bulldog while trying not to get caught by the boss.  YouTube is nothing new to the road enthusiast community, as others have been recording their journeys and uploading them to this popular website.  So now Pennsylvania Highways has entered the fray. However, trying to find its niche will take a little longer than it took to set the page up. 

One issue is that PennDOT has saved me the work by going ahead and videotaping all state routes.  Another issue is that I need a newer video camera than my family’s circa 1991 Panasonic camcorder that is as big as a half loaf of bread, or just buy the A/V dongle from Hauppauge, so I can record the video from it onto my computer’s hard drive.  Basically, this idea is still on the burner.

https://www.youtube.com/pahighways

So if you feel like it, social network with us at the links above.

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It’s a Bouncing Baby Business Route

Congratulations Brownsville, you’re the proud parents of the newest auxiliary route in Pennsylvania! It is a bouncing baby business route for US 40.

With the new section of US 40 east of the borough finished, PennDOT decided to sign the former route as business route. The new designation keeps the US 40 markers on the former route from Redstone Way to PA 166. In addition, they return to the former route into Brownsville for the first time since 1970!

The numerous changes in this area are all due to the Mon-Fayette Expressway. Completing US 40 from the end of the expressway at Grindstone Road, where traffic has had to zig-zag since the Nixon administration, has always been a part of the expressway plan.

The section of US 40 expressway that exists was built in anticipation of it becoming part of the proposed route. The Turnpike Commission was considering including that piece even as it was planning the route through Fayette County. However, the PTC decided to route Turnpike 43 around Brownsville on an entirely new path.

Path of the newest US Business Route in Pennsylvania.
Path of the newest US Business Route in Pennsylvania.  (PennDOT)

Make sure to send all gifts and cards to PennDOT District 12-0 to congratulate them on their new bouncing baby business route.

Business US 40 (Brownsville)

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Two Decades of Futility Come to An End

It seems the route change many were expecting around the New Year did not pan out.  I am speaking of course about the extension of Interstate 376. However, it did not mean that the official state road map lacked any changes after the opening of Interstate 99 in Centre County. Two decades of futility came to an end involving PA 82 in Berks County.

In December, PennDOT decided to truncate PA 82 at PA 23 in Elverson. The remainder of the route in Chester County became SR 4082.  In Berks County, the route became SR 2082 north to Birdsboro. An extension of the PA 345 designation replaced PA 82 from Birdsboro to its former northern terminus at US 422.

The northern end of the closed section of PA 82 in Birdsboro.
The northern end of the closed section of PA 82 in Birdsboro

A tropical depression inundated eastern Pennsylvania on the night of September 8, 1987. Consequently, the flooding it caused destroyed several bridges that carried PA 82 across Hay Creek south of Birdsboro.  The Department of Transportation wanted to rebuild them, but local opposition was strong from the residents who lived nearby. The local residents became accustom to the lack of traffic and wanted to keep it that way.  As a result, PA 345 became the de facto detour for north-south traffic between southern Berks County and Birdsboro.

The section that was devastated by flooding in 1987 which sits in a valley.
The section devastated by flooding and subsequently closed to traffic.  (United States Geologic Survey)

Now, with all the changes, it may be said that two decades of futility finally reached an end.

Two decades of futility focused around this gap in PA 82.
The gap in the PA 82 alignment south of Birdsboro.  (PennDOT)

Route 82’s Name Will Be Changed – Reading Eagle

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Interstate 99 FINALLY Opens on Skytop

Those who live along, and those who have had to travel the narrow and dangerous US 220 through the Bald Eagle Valley, have another reason to give thanks this Thanksgiving.  As of 3 PM today, the Bud Shuster Highway is finally open to both northbound and southbound traffic across Bald Eagle Mountain. In other words, Interstate 99 finally opens on Skytop!

PennDOT had previously opened both directions from Bald Eagle to Port Matilda in December 2007. However, from that point north, it was only open northbound. Continuing clean up of pyritic rock unearthed during construction was the reason.  Southbound traffic was still using the old alignment.  So it is now official:  PennDOT has slain the acid rock dragon.

Routes of US 220 and US 322 as remediation of acid rock was winding down and Interstate 99 finally opens.
Routes of US 220 and US 322 as remediation of acid rock was winding down

Interstate 99 markers now line the new highway.  However, it is only one of two Interstates to have its designation signed into law. Due to this issue, legislation will need to pass in order to update the definition of the route.  As of this post, the bill still needs to pass. Therefore, it could be said it is currently illegal being designated as such. However, then again, some people would already say it is that due to being west of Interstate 81. Nonetheless, Interstate 99 finally opens across Skytop Mountain.

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Route 30: The Movie

Banner for the "Route 30" movie.

The sections I drive could be classified as horror.  However, comedy is the genre of John Putch’s independent movie Route 30.  The Chambersburg native filmed the movie along, what else, US 30 last October. Stars include Dana Delany of Desperate Housewives and Curtis Armstrong, best known to audiences as Herbert Viola on the 1980s TV show Moonlighting.  Fellow Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor board member Ed Gotwalt, owner of Mister Ed’s Elephant Museum, also has a part.

The movie consists of three difference stories told from three different points of view. First are the frustrations of Civil War tour guide Mandy, played by Nathalie Boltt, who obsesses over Jennie Wade. She is the only civilian killed at the Battle of Gettysburg. At the same time, her friend June, played by Christine Elise McCarthy, struggles to make extra money with an Internet porn scheme.

The second story focuses on a man, played by Kevin Rahm. He finds a Christian Scientist, played by Wil Love, to heal his back pain. He also attempts to explain the Big Foot who chased him down a mountainside.

The last story is of a writer, played by David DeLuise, who purchases a farmhouse in hopes that it will inspire him to write his novel. He ends up sidetracked by his Amish neighbor, played by Dana Delany, who smokes, drinks, swears, and watches his TV.

The premier of the movie Route 30 will be at the Majestic Theatre in Gettysburg on September 27, 2008, at 8 PM. A Q&A session with the cast and crew will follow.  Tickets to the screening are $16 per person. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor and Totem Pole Playhouse non-profit organizations.  You can purchase tickets at the Totem Pole Playhouse, Mister Ed’s Elephant Museum, Majestic Theatre, or at the movie’s website.

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2007 Official Road Map

Last month, I received a copy of the 2007 official road map from the Department of Transportation’s Map Sales office. I was fortunate to be able to receive it just before the state shut down due to not being able to pass a budget.  Here are the changes since the 2006 edition:

Allegheny County/Washington County/Pittsburgh inset:
PA Turnpike 576 completed and open to traffic between US 22 and PA 60

PA Turnpike 576 completed on the 2007 official road map.

Berks County:
US 222 completed and now indicated with the red “expressway stripe” between PA 272 and Shillington

US 222 completed on the 2007 official road map.

Fayette County:
PA Turnpike 43 shown as under construction north of US 40 from US 119 to Brier Hill

PA Turnpike 43 under construction on the 2007 official road map.

Tioga County:
US 15 shown as under construction from PA 49 to the New York state line

US 15 under construction on the 2007 official road map.

Altoona inset:
Osgood Drive completed on the eastern side of I-99/US 220 between Exit 32 and Exit 33

Osgood Drive completed in Altoona on the 2007 official road map.

New Castle inset:
PA 65 extended from Business US 422 to end at PA 108/PA 168

PA 65 extended in New Castle on the 2007 official road map.

The map has the same dimensions as the previous year’s. However, this year’s cover is from America’s Most Livable City, Pittsburgh, with a man creating a mural in chalk on the West End overlook. You can view the 2007 official road map at Department of Transportation’s Graphical Information System page.

Cover of first version of the 2007 official road map.
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