| Capital Beltway | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harrisburg Expressway | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by PennDOT | ||||
| Length: | 27.51 mi[2] (44.27 km) PA 581: 7.36 mi (11.84 km)[1] |
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| Existed: | 1997 – present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| Beltway around Harrisburg | ||||
| I-83 / PA 581 in Lemoyne I-283 / US 322 in Lawnton I-81 / I-83 in Colonial Park I-81 / PA 581 west of Enola |
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| Location | ||||
| Counties: | Cumberland, Dauphin | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Roads in Pennsylvania
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The Capital Beltway is a beltway surrounding Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is co-designated as Interstate 81 (I-81), I-83, U.S. Route 11 (US 11), US 322, and Pennsylvania Route 581 (PA 581) at various locations along the route. The beltway is primarily located in the suburbs of Harrisburg; however, part of its southern leg passes along the southern edge of downtown. The southwestern section of the highway is named the Harrisburg Expressway. All of the beltway was complete by 1995; however, it was not designated as the Capital Beltway until 1997.
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The Capital Beltway begins at the interchange of the eastern terminus of PA 581 and I-83 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Harrisburg in Lemoyne. This junction is colloquially known as the "York split".[3] From the split, the beltway crosses the Susquehanna River on the John Harris Bridge, connecting Harrisburg to its west shore (a colloquialism of the western bank of the Susquehanna across from Harrisburg) suburbs of the city.
Continuing on I-83, the beltway parallels Paxton Street (formerly US 322), passing the Harrisburg Mall as the road approaches the Eisenhower Interchange. At the junction, the Capital Beltway continues on I-83 as it turns north, while beginning a concurrency with US 322. Continuing for three miles (5 km), I-83 ends at I-81 at an interchange locally known as the "81/83 split".[4][5] US 322 and the Capital Beltway continue on I-81 south.
On I-81, US 322 exits off I-81 at exit 67B, heading in a northerly direction to State College, beginning a concurrency with US 22 west. Exit 67A is for US 22 east, Cameron Street, which is where the Farm Show Arena Complex is located (a half mile south of the beltway). The Capital Beltway crosses the Susquehanna the second time on the George N. Wade Memorial Bridge. The beltway makes a southerly turn just beyond the bridge, near the western end of the Susquehanna Water Gap of Blue Mountain.
Continuing on I-81 until exit 59, the Capital Beltway exits onto PA 581, also known as the Harrisburg Expressway. US 11 begins a concurrency with PA 581 starting at exit 3, and then exits off and starts a concurrency with US 15 in Camp Hill, at the Camp Hill Shopping Center (formerly Camp Hill Mall). The beltway continues for two miles (3 km) until it completes the loop by reaching I-83 at the York split.
The I-81 and I-83 sections of the beltway were both fully completed by the 1970s. A expressway connecting I-81 to I-83 had been planned, and the portion of the highway from the York split to US 11 and US 15 in Camp Hill was completed in 1992. It became known as the Harrisburg Expressway, and it was given the PA 581 designation. The section from Camp Hill to I-81 remained incomplete until 1995 when construction began on the segment. It was finally completed and opened for public use in 1997. The PA 581 designation was extended northwestward to the interchange with I-81 when it opened. The Capital Beltway designation was assigned to its current alignment at this time. Engineering for the project was provided by Gannett Fleming of Camp Hill.
| County | Location | Mile[1] | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland | Lemoyne | 41.41 | 41A | PA 581 west | Inner loop exit and outer loop entrance; east end of concurrency with PA 581; south end of concurrency with I-83 |
| 41.31 | 41B | Highland Park | Outer loop exit and entrance | ||
| 41.63 | 42 | South 3rd Street | Outer loop exit and inner loop entrance | ||
| 42.01 | Lowther Street | Inner loop exit and outer loop entrance | |||
| Dauphin | Harrisburg | 42.70 | 43 | 2nd Street | |
| 43.13 | 44A | 13th Street | |||
| 43.54 | 44B | 17th Street / 19th Street | |||
| Swatara Township | 45.11 | 45 | 32nd Street | Outer loop exit | |
| Paxton Street | Inner loop exit | ||||
| 45.92 | 46 | I-283 south (Eisenhower Interchange) | |||
| 45.96 | 47 | US 322 east (Eisenhower Interchange) | Outer loop exit and inner loop entrance; south end of concurrency with US 322 | ||
| 46.76 | 47 | US 322 east / Derry Street / Paxton Street | Inner loop exit and outer loop entrance; south end of concurrency with US 322 | ||
| Lower Paxton Township | 47.92 | 48 | Union Deposit Road, Penbrook | ||
| 49.23 | 50 | US 22 (Jonestown Road) | Split into exits 50A (east) and 50B (west) on outer loop | ||
| 50.21 | 51 | I-81 / US 322 west | Split into exits 51A (west / south) and 51B (north) on inner loop; east end foe concurrency with I-81; north end of concurrency with I-83 | ||
| 69.70 | 70 | I-83 south / US 322 east – Hershey, Harrisburg Airport | Inner loop exit; east end of I-81 overlap; north end of I-83 overlap | ||
| Susquehanna Township | 68.70 | 69 | Progress Avenue | Serves Widener University | |
| 67.13 | 67B | US 22 / US 322 west – Lewistown, State College | North end of US 322 overlap; left exit on inner loop | ||
| 67A | US 22 east to PA 230 (Cameron Street) | Serves Harrisburg Area Community College; left exit on outer loop | |||
| 65.97 | 66 | Front Street – Downtown Harrisburg | Serves Amtrak Terminal | ||
| Cumberland | East Pennsboro Township | 64.78 | 65 | US 11 / US 15 – Enola, Marysville | Serves Central Pennsylvania College; split into exits 65A (south) and 65B (north) |
| Hampden Township | 60.85 | 61 | PA 944 (Wertzville Road) | ||
| 59.13 | 59 | PA 581 east (Harrisburg Expressway) to US 11 – Camp Hill | Outer loop exit; west end of concurrency with PA 581 and I-81 | ||
| 0.00 | 1 | I-81 (American Legion Memorial Highway) | Split into exits 1A (north) and 1B (south loop exit; west end of concurrency with PA 581 and I-81 | ||
| 1.00 | 2 | Creekview Road | |||
| 2.10 | 3 | US 11 north (Carlisle Pike) | West end of concurrency with US 11 | ||
| Camp Hill | 4.09 | 4 | PA 641 (Trindle Road) / Central Boulevard / Church Street | ||
| 5.07 | 5B | US 15 south (Corps League Memorial Highway) | |||
| 5A | US 11 / US 15 north (32nd Street) | Cloverleaf interchange; east end of concurrency with US 11 | |||
| Highland Park Area | 7.36 | 6 | I-83 (VFW Memorial Highway) | Split into exits 6A (north) and 6B (south) on outer loop; east end of PA 581 overlap; south end of concurrency with I-83 overlap |
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