U.S. Route 22 in Pennsylvania

U.S. Route 22
Route information
Maintained by PennDOT & DRJTBC
Length: 337.60 mi[1] (543.31 km)
Existed: 1926 – present
Major junctions
West end: US 22 in Hanover Township
 

Toll PA 576 in Washington County
US 30 near Pittsburgh
I-79 near Pittsburgh
US 30 in Wilkinsburg
I-76 / I-376 / Penna. Tpk. in Monroeville
I-99 / US 220 in Duncansville
US 322 / US 522 in Lewistown
US 11 / US 15 near Duncannon
I-81 / US 322 in Harrisburg
I-78 from Fredericksburg to Kuhnsville

I-476 / Penna. Tpk. in South Whitehall Township
East end: US 22 in Easton
Highway system

United States Numbered Highways
List • Bannered • Divided • Replaced

Roads in Pennsylvania
Interstate • US • State • Legislative

PA 21 PA 22

U.S. Route 22 is an east–west route stretching from Cincinnati, Ohio in the west to Newark, New Jersey in the east. In Pennsylvania, the route runs for 337.60 miles (543.31 km) between the West Virginia state line at Washington County, where it is a limited-access expressway-grade route through the western suburbs of Pittsburgh, to the New Jersey state line at Easton.

Contents

Route description

US 22 carries multiple names as it progresses across the state, including the William Penn Highway and the Lehigh Valley Thruway. Several sections of the road are highway, including the Lehigh Valley Thruway.

US Route 22 crosses into Pennsylvania from West Virginia as the William Penn Highway. It becomes concurrent with US Route 30 and then also with I-376 west of Pittsburgh, and becomes the Penn Lincoln Parkway. It continues as such through Pittsburgh and beyond the end of the US 30 concurrency, and at the eastern end of I-376, US 22 goes onto William Penn Highway again. It becomes the Admiral Perry Highway and provides four lanes of travel from Armagh to Altoona. From New Florence thru most of Ebensburg, US 22 is an expressway with the remaining portion from Ebensburg to Altoona operating as a limited-access freeway. From Hollidaysburg to Mount Union, US 22 is a two-lane road with occasional passing and truck-climbing lanes. It becomes concurrent with US 522 near Mount Union and remains a two-lane road. The concurrency continues the concurrency until Lewistown. US 22 bypasses the downtown area of Lewistown as a four-lane limited access highway and becomes concurrent with US 322 and continues as a four-lane limited access highway along the Juniata and Susquehanna rivers until Harrisburg. In Harrisburg (with the US 322 concurrency ending at I-81), it continues as N Cameron Street, Arsenal Blvd., Herr St., Walnut St., Jonestown Rd., and Allentown Blvd. In Fredericksburg, US 22 becomes concurrent with I-78 for a 40-mile (64 km) stretch before splitting off on to the Lehigh Valley Thruway.

Lehigh Valley Thruway

The Lehigh Valley Thruway is a 24-mile-long (39 km) freeway portion of US 22 from the eastern end of the Interstate 78/US 22 concurrency in Kuhnsville, west of Allentown, to the state line in Easton. The highway travels just to the north of Allentown and Bethlehem and passes through Easton. Originally, I-78 would have continued with the U.S. 22 concurrency on the Lehigh Valley Thruway into New Jersey, with I-278 running south as a bypass, and I-178 and I-378 serving Allentown and Bethlehem respectively. Due to opposition in Phillipsburg, New Jersey on the building of a I-78/U.S. 22 highway through the town (the same opposition that later killed the Somerset Freeway for I-95 in 1982), PennDOT and NJDOT decided to reroute the I-78 highway onto the proposed I-278 bypass and allow U.S. 22 to remain on the limited-access highway, which, after going through sharp curves and crossing the Delaware River into NJ, becomes an at-grade divided highway in Phillipsburg. Traffic on the Lehigh Valley Thruway is often heavy at rush hour, particularly near the PA 145 interchange. Once in Easton, the highway goes through a series of potentially dangerous curves, locally known as "Cemetery Curve." For this reason, the speed limit is lowered to 45 mph at Route 248 and then lowered to 35 mph around the sharpest part of the curve. At the interchange with Bushkill Street, US 22 becomes an elevated highway until crossing into New Jersey. The speed limit drops once again to 25 mph while crossing the Easton-Phillipsburg Toll Bridge.

Future

In 2011, it was announced that plans were being resurrected to widen US 22 from Allentown to Bethlehem. Part of the plan is to reconstruct the Lehigh River Bridge. The plan's cost is between $240 to $320 million.[2]

History

The William Penn Highway was organized as an alternative to the Lincoln Highway being parallel to the Pennsylvania Railroad west of Harrisburg. The route's New York Extension was adopted in 1916. The Pennsylvania Department of Highways assigned the Pennsylvania Route 3 designation to this road in 1924, and in 1926 it became part of U.S. Route 22 when the United States Highway System was formed,[3] The road became problematic for motorists in Lebanon along the current U.S. Route 422; Reading via U.S. Routes 22 and 222; and Allentown on Hamilton Street (US 22).[4] The highway continued through Allentown on Hanover Avenue and through Bethlehem on Broad Street, Linden Street, and Easton Avenue.

Pennsylvania Route 43 was aligned as a bypass, north of the Pennsylvania Dutch Country, that ran from U.S. Route 22, U.S. Route 11, and Pennsylvania Route 5 in Harrisburg to Pennsylvania Route 12 in Bethlehem.[5] The route from Fogelsville to Allentown, now Main Street, Tilghman Street, Broadway, College Heights Boulevard, and Liberty Street, was designated LR 443 in 1925,[6] and was soon incorporated into "Traffic Route 43."[7] The New York Times was recommending use of this cutoff by early 1931[7]. On June 8, 1931, the American Association of State Highway Officials came to a resolution for the traffic problem, by replacing the PA 43 corridor with US 22. The Pennsylvania Department of Highways moved the William Penn Highway name to match.[3][4] The state truncated PA 43 to Susquehanna Street from Allentown to Bethlehem.[5][8][9][10]

Tilghman Street was eventually connected directly from Cetronia to Allentown by a bridge over Cedar Creek; Tilghman Street (west of the Lehigh River) and Union Boulevard (east of the river) were joined in 1929 by a bridge. By 1936, US 22 had been moved from its Hamilton Street and Broad Street alignment to Tilghman Street and Union Boulevard through Allentown and Bethlehem. When the Lehigh Valley Thruway was completed in 1954, US 22 was moved onto it. With the completion of Interstate 78, US 22 was moved onto that highway from Fredericksburg to Kuhnsville.

Former alignment

Old U.S. Route 22 is the former PA 43, and the earlier version of the newer, more traveled U.S. Highway 22. It starts in the unincorporated community of Bethel, Pennsylvania of Berks County and ends in Cetronia, just outside of the city of Allentown (Lehigh County) where it becomes Main Street and then Tilghman Street. This road, although no longer a major state highway, is well traveled by those who live in the vicinity. It passes through several communities including Shartlesville, Jalappa, West Hamburg, Edenburg, Krumsville, and New Smithville. It also passes through the boroughs of Strausstown, Hamburg and Lenhartsville. Old U.S. Route 22 crosses seven Pennsylvania highways including 501, 419, 183, 61, 143, 737, and 863. Through these different neighborhoods, this road is defined as Old Route 22, Hex Highway, and Shartlesville Road.

From Cetronia east, the old road is State Route 1002 in Lehigh County, comprising Tilghman Street and Union Boulevard in Allentown. In Northampton County, the 1940s highway is Union Boulevard, Linden Street, and Easton Avenue in Bethlehem; William Penn Highway between Bethlehem and Easton; and Butler Street, 13th Street, and Northampton Street in Easton.

Major intersections

County Location Mile Exit Destinations Notes
Washington
Hanover Township US 22 west West Virginia border
PA 18 – Florence, Burgettstown
Smith Township Bavington
Robinson Township Toll PA 576 west (Southern Beltway) – Pittsburgh International Airport
Allegheny
North Fayette Township PA 980 south – McDonald, Midway
Noblestown To Pennsylvania Motor Speedway
US 30 west / PA 978 south – Imperial West end of US 30 overlap
Hankey Farms
Oakdale
Montour Church Road Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
Old Steubenville Pike, Bayer Road
Robinson Township I-376 west (Airport Parkway) – Pittsburgh International Airport West end of I-376 overlap, I-376 exit 60A
60B PA 60 south – Crafton
61 Ridge Road
62 Campbells Run Road Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
Collier Township 64A I-79 – Washington, Erie
Rosslyn Farms 64B Rosslyn Farms Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
Carnegie Buses only (West Busway) Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
65 PA 50 west – Carnegie, Heidelberg
Green Tree 67 PA 121 – Green Tree, Mount Lebanon, Crafton
Pittsburgh 68 Parkway Center Drive Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
69A US 19 south (Banksville Road) West end of US 19/US 19 Truck overlap; eastbound exit is via exit 69C
69B
US 19 Truck south / PA 51 south – Uniontown
Westbound exit is via exit 69A
69C US 19 north / PA 51 north – West End East end of US 19 overlap; eastbound exit and westbound entrance
Fort Pitt Tunnel under Mount Washington
69C PA 837 to PA 51 – West End Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
Fort Pitt Bridge over the Monongahela River
70A Boulevard of the Allies, Liberty AvenueMellon Arena Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
70B Fort Duquesne Boulevard – Convention Center, Strip District Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
70C
I-279 / US 19 Truck north – Fort Duquesne Bridge, North Shore
East end of US 19 Truck overlap
70D Stanwix Street No eastbound exit
71A Grant Street
71B Second Avenue Westbound exit only
72A Forbes Avenue – Oakland Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
72B To I-579 (Crosstown Blvd) / PA 885 north (Boulevard of the Allies) / Liberty Bridge Westbound exit and eastbound entrance, access to I-579 and Liberty Bridge is via Boulevard of the Allies
73 PA 885 (Bates Street) – Oakland, Glenwood Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; signed as exits 73A (south) and 73B (north)
74 Blue Belt – Squirrel Hill, Homestead
Squirrel Hill Tunnel under Squirrel Hill
Swissvale 77 Edgewood, Swissvale
Wilkinsburg 78A US 30 east – Forest Hills East end of US 30 overlap; no westbound exit
78B PA 8 north – Wilkinsburg
Churchill 79A Greensburg Pike Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
79B PA 130 – Churchill
80
US 22 Bus. east – Monroeville
Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
Penn Hills 81 PA 791 north / Yellow Belt – Penn Hills
Monroeville 84A PA 48 south / Orange Belt – Monroeville Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
84B Orange Belt – Plum Eastbound exit and westbound entrance

US 22 Bus. west – Monroeville
Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
I-376 to I-76 / Penna. Tpk. – Harrisburg, Ohio East end of I-376 overlap
East end of freeway
PA 286 north (Golden Mile Highway)
Westmoreland
Salem Township PA 66 – Delmont, Greensburg Single point diamond interchange
PA 819 – Salem Township
New Alexandria US 119 south Interchange, west end of US 119 overlap
PA 981
Blairsville PA 982 south
Indiana
PA 217 – Blairsville, Derry Interchange
Burrell Township US 119 north – Homer City, Indiana Interchange, east end of US 119 overlap, to Indiana University of Pennsylvania
East Wheatfield Township PA 56 – Armagh, Brush Valley Interchange
PA 403 – Dilltown, Johnstown Interchange
Cambria
Jackson Township PA 271 – Nanty Glo, Johnstown Interchange
Ebensburg US 219 to US 422 – Johnstown, DuBois Interchange
High Street Interchange
West end of freeway
Rowena Drive
Munster Township PA 164 south – Portage, Munster
Cresson Township PA 53 – Cresson
William Penn Highway – Summit
Blair
Allegheny Township Tunnelhill Road – Tunnelhill, Gallitzin
I-99 / US 220 – Altoona, Bedford
PA 764 north – Altoona West end of PA 764 overlap
East end of freeway
PA 764 East end of PA 764 overlap
Hollidaysburg PA 36 (Penn Street)
Point View PA 866 Northern terminus of PA 866
Huntingdon
Water Street PA 453 Southern terminus of PA 453
Alexandria PA 305 Western terminus of PA 305
Huntingdon PA 26 (Pennsylvania Avenue) Interchange
Mill Creek PA 829 Northern terminus of PA 829
PA 655 north West end of PA 655 concurrency
Brady Township PA 655 south East end of PA 655 concurrency
Mifflin
Wayne Township PA 747 south (North Jefferson Street) Northern terminus of PA 747
US 522 south (Croghan Pike) East end of US 522 concurrency
West end of freeway
Lewistown
US 22 Bus.
US 322 west – State College West end of US 322 overlap
Ort Valley Road
Electric Avenue
US 522 north (Walnut Street) East end of US 522 overlap

US 22 Bus. west – Lewistown
Juniata
Fermanagh Township Arch Rock Road
PA 35 – Mifflintown, McAlisterville To Mifflintown Airport
Walker Township PA 75 south – Port Royal
Delaware Township PA 333 – East Salem, Thompsontown
Pfoutz Valley Road
Perry
Greenwood Township To PA 17 – Millerstown
Howe Township PA 34 – Newport, Bloomfield
Buffalo Township Midway Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
Watts Township Watts
Amity Hall
Dauphin
Reed Township US 11 / US 15 – Camp Hill, Selinsgrove
At-grade section
PA 849 – Duncannon
Clarks Ferry Bridge over Susquehanna River
PA 147 north – Halifax
PA 325 east (Mountain Road)
Dauphin PA 225 north – Halifax, Dauphin
Middle Paxton Township Dauphin Borough, Stony Creek Westbound exit
Heckton Eastbound exit
PA 443 – Fishing Creek, Rockville, Fort Hunter
Susquehanna Township PA 39 – Linglestown, Rockville
I-81 south – Carlisle
I-81 north / US 322 east – Hazleton, Hershey East end of US 322 overlap
East end of freeway
Harrisburg PA 230 (Cameron Street) Western terminus of PA 230
Colonial Park I-83 / US 322 – Lewistown, Hershey, York Interchange
Manor Acres PA 39 (Hershey Road)
Grantville PA 743 (Laudermilch Road)
Lebanon
East Hanover Township PA 934 Interchange
Union Township PA 72 – Lickdale, Lebanon Cloverleaf interchange
Bethel Township PA 343 south (Pine Grove Road) West end of PA 343 overlap
PA 343 north (Pine Grove Road) East end of PA 343 overlap
Local Traffic Old US 22 (Hex Highway)
West end of freeway
I-78 west – Harrisburg West end of I-78 overlap, I-78 exit 8
Berks
Bethel Township 10 PA 645 – Frystown
Bethel 13 PA 501 – Bethel
Bethel Township 15 Grimes No access across I-78/US 22
16 Midway To Conrad Weiser Homestead
17 PA 419 – Rehrersburg
Strausstown 19 PA 183 – Strausstown
Upper Bern Township 23 Shartlesville
Tilden Township 29 PA 61 – Reading, Pottsville Signed as exits 29A (south) and 29B (north) on the westbound side
Hamburg 30 Hamburg
Greenwich Township 35 PA 143 – Lenhartsville
40 PA 737 – Kutztown, Krumsville To Kutztown University
Lehigh
Weisenberg Township 45 PA 863 – Lynnport, New Smithville
Upper Macungie Township 49A PA 100 south – Trexlertown
49B PA 100 north – Fogelsville
I-78 east – New Jersey Eastbound exit and westbound entrance, east end of I-78 overlap, I-78 exit 51
SR 1002 (Tilghman Street) – Cetronia, Kuhnsville Former routing of US 22 through Allentown
South Whitehall Township I-476 / Penna. Tpk. – Scranton, Philadelphia Toll road
PA 309 south – Quakertown To I-78 east and Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom
PA 309 north – Tamaqua To Lehigh Carbon Community College
Cedar Crest Boulevard To Muhlenberg College and Cedar Crest College
15th Street
Whitehall Township PA 145 south (MacArthur Road/7th Street) To Allentown Center City
PA 145 north (MacArthur Road) To Lehigh Valley Mall and Whitehall Mall
Fullerton Avenue
Hanover Township PA 987 north (Airport Road) – LVI Airport Southern terminus of PA 987
Bethlehem PA 378 south – Bethlehem To Lehigh University, Historic Bethlehem, Sands Casino Resort; Formerly I-378
Northampton
Schoenersville Road
Hanover Township PA 512 (Center Street) To Moravian College
Bethlehem Township PA 191 (Nazareth Pike) To Northampton Community College
PA 33 to I-78 – Bethlehem, Stroudsburg
Palmer Township PA 248 (25th Street) – Wilson To Palmer Heights and Easton
Easton 13th Street
PA 248 / PA 611 / 4th Street Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
3rd Street – Easton Westbound exit and eastbound entrance, to Lafayette College
PA 611 – Easton Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
US 22 east Easton-Phillipsburg Toll Bridge over Delaware River, New Jersey border
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Bannered routes

Monroeville business loop


U.S. Route 22 Business
Location: Monroeville, Pennsylvania

U.S. Route 22 Business is a 5-mile loop through the eastern Pittsburgh suburbs of Churchill, Wilkins Township, and Monroeville, Pennsylvania. The route's western terminus is at a freeway junction with Interstate 376, which features cosignment by the business loop's parent route. The first two miles of the road are contained in a valley, surrounded by a variety of side roads leading to suburban, mostly residential development. The remaining three miles feature dense commercial development, including several office high rises and the Monroeville Mall. The highway ends at a complicated junction that features the northern terminus of Pennsylvania Route 48, the southern end of Haymaker Road, and Interstate 376, which features its last two exits (before the Pennsylvania Turnpike) with the above streets. Business US 22 then travels for its final eighth of a mile on a viaduct that allows for connections with the Pennsylvania Turnpike and a smooth transition on to US 22 east toward affluent suburban Murrysville, Pennsylvania.

Lewistown business loop


U.S. Route 22 Business
Location: Lewistown, Pennsylvania

U.S. Route 22 Business is a 6-mile loop through Lewistown, Pennsylvania. It serves as the major through street, taking on the former designation of its parent, which has become a freeway bypass. The first two miles of the route travel through rural Granville Township. The middle two mile segment is lined with small development and features several stop lights and a segment that contains a center turning lane. The last two miles wind along the Juniata River toward the eastern freeway juncture.

References

  1. ^ DeLorme Street Atlas USA 2007 software, Driving Directions
  2. ^ http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/breaking-news/index.ssf/2011/08/pennsylvania_commission_delive.html
  3. ^ a b "William Penn Highway: US 22 in Pennsylvania". Federal Highway Administration. http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/us22.htm. Retrieved 2007-06-26. 
  4. ^ a b Butko, Brian A.; Kevin Joseph Patrick (1999). Diners of Pennsylvania. Stackpole Books. ISBN 0811728781. 
  5. ^ a b Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1930 state map, front side (Map). ftp://ftp.dot.state.pa.us/public/pdf/BPR_pdf_files/Maps/Statewide/Historic_OTMs/1930fr.pdf. Retrieved 2007-06-26. 
  6. ^ Public Law 191, passed April 8, 1925
  7. ^ a b Dickinson, Leon A. (February 1, 1931). "Highways Into the Deep South". New York Times. p. 136. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60616F93E55147A93C3A91789D85F458385F9. Retrieved 2009-08-14. "Here one meets and follows U.S. Route 22 through Bethlehem to Allentown; then along Route 43 direct to Harrisburg." 
  8. ^ Pennsylvania Department of Highways (1929). Allentown Area Map (Map). http://www.broermapsonline.org/members/NorthAmerica/UnitedStates/Midatlantic/Pennsylvania/bluebook1929_003.html. Retrieved 2007-07-24. 
  9. ^ Pennsylvania Department of Highways (1930). State Map, back side (Map). ftp://ftp.dot.state.pa.us/public/pdf/BPR_pdf_files/Maps/Statewide/Historic_OTMs/1930bk.pdf. Retrieved 2007-07-24. 
  10. ^ Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1941 Lehigh County Map (Map). ftp://ftp.dot.state.pa.us/public/pdf/BPR_PDF_FILES/Maps/Type_10_GHS_Historical_Scans/Lehigh_1941.pdf. Retrieved 2007-06-25. 

External links

U.S. Route 22
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