Pennsylvania State Route System
|
Standard route signs in Pennsylvania | |
| System information | |
|---|---|
| Notes: |
Numbers are assigned through Location Referencing System; all routes are assigned quadrant numbers, State Route X (SR X), which usually corresponded to the signed numbers of traffic routes (PA X). State Routes are generally state-maintained. |
| Highway names | |
| Interstates: | Interstate X (I-X) |
| US Routes: | U.S. Route X (US X) |
| State: | Pennsylvania Route X (PA Route X; PA X); quadrant routes (SR X) |
| System links | |
In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, state highways are maintained by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Each is assigned a four-digit State Route (SR) number in the present Location Referencing System. Traffic Routes are signed as Interstate Highways, U.S. Routes and Pennsylvania Routes (PA Routes), and are prefixed with one to three zeros to give a four-digit number. PA Routes are also called Pennsylvania Traffic Routes, and formerly State Highway Routes.[1]
History
The Pennsylvania State Route System was established by the Sproul Road Bill passed in 1911. The system took control of over 4,000 miles of road. The system of roads continued to grow over the next few decades until continual addition of roads faced greater opposition. On October 1, 1940, the Pennsylvania Turnpike's first section of highway was opened to motorized traffic; the Turnpike operated under the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission and was independent of the then-known Department of Highways.
In 1970, the Department of Highways and several other offices and departments were reorganized into the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. In 1987, the Sproul system of Legislative Routes was reorganized into the current Pennsylvania State Route System under the Location Referencing System.
Location Referencing System
| Route number | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0001-0999 | Traffic Routes | the first 0 is usually not existent on the markers |
| 1001-4999 | Quadrant Routes | assigned by rough quadrant in the county, going clockwise from northeast (1) to northwest (4) |
| 6001-6999 | Relocated Traffic Routes | (Including alternate lanes such as local lanes or HOV lanes), assigned a number equal to the old number plus 6000 |
| 7001-7999 | Turned back, abandoned, or null routes | 7076, 7276, 7376, 7576, 7476, and 7043 are used for sections of the Pennsylvania Turnpike[3] |
| 8001-8999 | Interchanges | With one number per interchange |
| 9101-9199 | Wye connections | |
| 9201-9299 | Rest areas | |
| 9301-9399 | Truck escape ramps | |
| 9401-9499 | Other roadways | |
Signage
The symbol used for the signage of state routes is an outline of the keystone after Pennsylvania's nickname. Four-digit State Routes are unsigned, except on small white reference markers at intersections, and are only unique within each county. Underneath, there is a larger typeface number, usually in multiples of 10, which is used to mark the highway in increments. More specifically, they are spaced every half-mile. To calculate the distance, simply divide the number by 20. For example, a sign reading a 240 means it is at mile 12. The numbers start either from the south or west of the county or state line or beginning of the highway.
Circumstances with some routes
Bannered routes are not assigned State Route numbers corresponding to their signed numbers, but are instead marked along other routes, mostly Quadrant Routes.
Concurrencies are assigned a number equal to the smaller number of the concurrent routes, or the highest type (Quadrant Route → PA Route → U.S. Route → Interstate).[2]
Occasionally, a signed Traffic Route number does not match the State Route, usually in the case of an extension or relocation. (One example is Pennsylvania Route 3, which uses a one-way pair of Quadrant Routes in Center City Philadelphia.) A different number can also be used to avoid conflicts between different types — for instance, signed Pennsylvania Route 380 is actually State Route 400, renumbered ca. 1973 when Interstate 81E was renumbered Interstate 380. The majority of, but not all, signed Traffic Routes are state-maintained.[4]
Lists of routes in the Pennsylvania State Route System
 |
Interstate Highways: A list of interstate highways. |
 |
U.S. Routes: A list of U.S. highways. |
  |
State Routes: A list of state routes. |
See also
References
- ↑ Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Historic Transportation Maps
- 1 2 Pennsylvania Department of Transportation - Location Referencing System PDF (2.05 MiB)
- ↑ "Penndot - Pennsylvania Stateroads 200901". Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Retrieved 2010-01-19.
- ↑ For instance, the Lawrence County map PDF (2.17 MiB, FTP) indicates that Pennsylvania Route 551 north of Pulaski, near the north edge of the county is — except for the bridge over Buchanan Creek — locally maintained as Township Route 649. This is confirmed by the VideoLog. A 1990 county map PDF (5.97 MiB, FTP) shows that it was once state-maintained all the way as Legislative Route 649.