Interstate 476 (I-476) is a
auxiliary Interstate Highway
Auxiliary Interstate Highways (also called three-digit Interstate Highways) are a supplemental subset of the freeways within the Interstate Highway System of the United States.
Auxiliary routes are generally classified as spur routes, which conn ...
of
I-76
Interstate 76 may refer to:
Interstate Highways in the United States
* Interstate 76 (Colorado–Nebraska)
* Interstate 76 (Ohio–New Jersey), running through Pennsylvania
Video gaming
* ''Interstate '76
''Interstate '76'' is a vehicular ...
in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
. The highway runs from
I-95
Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadia ...
near
Chester north to
I-81
Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Isla ...
near
Scranton
Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...
, serving as the primary north–south Interstate corridor through eastern Pennsylvania. It consists of both the Mid-County Expressway, locally referred to as the "Blue Route", through
Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
and
Montgomery counties in the suburban
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
area, and the
tolled, Northeast Extension of the
Pennsylvania Turnpike
The Pennsylvania Turnpike (Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike) is a toll highway operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A controlled-access highway, it runs for across the state. The turnpike's w ...
, which connects the
Delaware Valley with the
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley (), known colloquially as The Valley, is a geographic region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County and Northampton County in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a component valley of the Great Appalachian Valley bound to the no ...
, the
Pocono Mountains
The Pocono Mountains, commonly referred to as the Poconos , are a geographical, geological, and cultural region in Northeastern Pennsylvania. They overlook the Delaware River and Delaware Water Gap to the east, Lake Wallenpaupack to the north, ...
, and the
Wyoming Valley
The Wyoming Valley is a historic industrialized region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The region is historically notable for its influence in helping fuel the American Industrial Revolution with its many anthracite coal-mines. As a metropolitan ...
to the north.
The Mid-County Expressway passes through suburban areas, while the Northeast Extension predominantly runs through rural areas of mountains, forest, and farmland, with development closer to Philadelphia and in the Lehigh Valley and the Wyoming Valley. I-476 intersects many major roads, including I-76 (
Schuylkill Expressway
The Schuylkill Expressway , locally known as "the Schuylkill", is a freeway through southern Montgomery County and the city of Philadelphia in Philadelphia County, and the easternmost segment of Interstate 76 (I-76) in the U.S. state of Pennsyl ...
) in
West Conshohocken
West Conshohocken is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,320 at the 2010 census.
Its sister community is Conshohocken, located across the Schuylkill River. Montgomery County's seat, Norristown, is lo ...
,
I-276 (Pennsylvania Turnpike) in
Plymouth Meeting,
U.S. Route 22 (US 22) near
Allentown Allentown may refer to several places in the United States and topics related to them:
*Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California
*Allentown, Georgia, a town in Wilkinson County
*Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Taze ...
, and
I-80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
near
Hickory Run State Park
Hickory Run State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Kidder and Penn Forest Townships in Carbon County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is spread across the Pocono Mountains. The park is easily accessible from Interstate 476 and ...
.
At its opening in 1979, I-476 was a , four-lane spur expressway connecting the Schuylkill Expressway with Chemical Road in Plymouth Meeting. It significantly helped reduce congestion through
King of Prussia
The monarchs of Prussia were members of the House of Hohenzollern who were the hereditary rulers of the former German state of Prussia from its founding in 1525 as the Duchy of Prussia. The Duchy had evolved out of the Teutonic Order, a Roman C ...
and the Schuylkill Expressway as it provided a more direct link from the
Philadelphia Main Line
The Philadelphia Main Line, known simply as the Main Line, is an informally delineated historical and social region of suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lying along the former Pennsylvania Railroad's once prestigious Main Line, it runs ...
suburbs to the northern suburbs of Philadelphia and
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
. The highway was initially planned to connect down to I-95 in Delaware County, but, due to environmental and local opposition, this portion did not open until 1991.
In 1996, the I-476 designation was affixed to the preexisting Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, replacing Pennsylvania Route 9 (PA 9). This was an older four-lane pre-Interstate limited-access highway that opened in sections between 1955 and 1957. Of earlier design, its cross section was very narrow, with only between opposing lanes of traffic in places. This extended I-476 north of Plymouth Meeting to
Clarks Summit (near Scranton) as a part of the Pennsylvania Turnpike system. I-476 connected to the Northeast Extension at a state-of-the-art three-level interchange. This provided direct access to both I-276 east and I-476 north, now on the Northeast Extension. With the redesignation of the Northeast Extension, I-476 surpassed
I-495 Interstate 495 (I-495) is the designation for several Interstate Highways in the United States, all of which are related to Interstate 95, listed from south to north:
* The Capital Beltway, a beltway around Washington, D.C., running through Virgin ...
in
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
as the longest auxiliary Interstate Highway, a record it will hold until the completion of
I-369 in
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
. I-476 was widened to six lanes from the Mid-County Interchange to south of
Quakertown between 2011 and 2020.
Route description
Woodlyn to Plymouth Meeting
The portion of I-476 between
I-95
Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadia ...
and the
Pennsylvania Turnpike
The Pennsylvania Turnpike (Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike) is a toll highway operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A controlled-access highway, it runs for across the state. The turnpike's w ...
(
I-276) runs north–south through
Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
and
Montgomery counties and is officially known as the Mid-County Expressway and the Veterans Memorial Highway, as well as by the nickname the "Blue Route". The road's southern terminus is at a
directional T interchange
In the field of road transport, an interchange (American English) or a grade-separated junction (British English) is a road junction that uses grade separations to allow for the movement of traffic between two or more roadways or highways, usi ...
with I-95 near
Chester, a city southwest of
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
in Delaware County, near the
Philadelphia International Airport.
Heading north, the road passes under
CSX
CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...
's
Philadelphia Subdivision
The Philadelphia Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. The line runs from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, southwest to Baltimore, Maryland, along a forme ...
rail line and has an interchange with MacDade Boulevard in
Woodlyn, where it narrows to a four-lane
parkway that runs parallel to the
Crum Creek
Crum Creek (from the Dutch, meaning "crooked creek") is a creek in Delaware County and Chester County, Pennsylvania, flowing approximately , generally in a southward direction and draining into the Delaware River in Eddystone, Pennsylvania. I ...
. It winds through the western Philadelphia suburbs of
Wallingford and
Swarthmore, where I-476 passes under
SEPTA
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly 4 million people in five c ...
's
Media/Wawa Line
The Media/Wawa Line is a SEPTA Regional Rail service that runs from Center City Philadelphia west to Wawa in Delaware County. It uses the West Chester Branch, which connects with the SEPTA Main Line at 30th Street Station. Under the Pennsylva ...
and comes to a
diamond interchange
A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road.
Design
The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the ...
with
Baltimore Pike
The Baltimore Pike was an auto trail connecting Baltimore, Maryland, with Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Today, parts of the road are signed as U.S. Route 1 (US 1), US 13, and a small portion of Pennsylvania Route 41 (PA 41). A section of the ro ...
just west of
Springfield. From here, the freeway crosses over SEPTA's
Route 101 trolley line and continues north to Springfield, where it meets
US 1 at a
three-level diamond interchange
A three-level diamond interchange is a type of highway interchange where through traffic on both main roads is grade-separated from intersections which handle transferring traffic. It is similar in design to a three-level stacked roundabout exc ...
.
Past US 1, the parallel Crum Creek splits to the northwest and I-476 continues through wooded suburban areas. Along this stretch, the road briefly gains a third southbound lane. The freeway comes to a
partial cloverleaf interchange with
PA 3 in
Broomall, where it widens to six lanes.
The route continues to
Radnor Township, which is part of the
Philadelphia Main Line
The Philadelphia Main Line, known simply as the Main Line, is an informally delineated historical and social region of suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lying along the former Pennsylvania Railroad's once prestigious Main Line, it runs ...
suburbs, reaching an interchange with
US 30 west of
Villanova.
Stone monuments, including a large stone
cairn atop a hill and a large crushed-stone image of a mythological
griffin on a hillside, were constructed at the US 30 interchange to commemorate Radnor's history as part of the
Welsh Tract. Proceeding northward, the road passes over SEPTA's
Norristown High Speed Line
The Norristown High Speed Line (NHSL), also called the Purple Line, the P&W, or Route 100,) is a interurban light rapid transit line operated by SEPTA, running between the 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby and the Norristown Tr ...
before it crosses under
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
's
Keystone Corridor
The Keystone Corridor is a 349-mile (562 km) railroad corridor between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, that consists of two rail lines: Amtrak and SEPTA's Philadelphia-to-Harrisburg main line, which hosts SEPTA's Paoli/Thorndale ...
rail line. The route enters Montgomery County and comes to an interchange with
I-76
Interstate 76 may refer to:
Interstate Highways in the United States
* Interstate 76 (Colorado–Nebraska)
* Interstate 76 (Ohio–New Jersey), running through Pennsylvania
Video gaming
* ''Interstate '76
''Interstate '76'' is a vehicular ...
(
Schuylkill Expressway
The Schuylkill Expressway , locally known as "the Schuylkill", is a freeway through southern Montgomery County and the city of Philadelphia in Philadelphia County, and the easternmost segment of Interstate 76 (I-76) in the U.S. state of Pennsyl ...
) in
West Conshohocken
West Conshohocken is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,320 at the 2010 census.
Its sister community is Conshohocken, located across the Schuylkill River. Montgomery County's seat, Norristown, is lo ...
that also has access to
PA 23. After crossing over
Norfolk Southern
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31, ...
's
Harrisburg Line
The Harrisburg Line is a rail line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The line runs from Philadelphia west to Harrisburg.
The Harrisburg Line was formed the day Conrail began operations, ...
, the
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It f ...
, SEPTA's
Manayunk/Norristown Line
The Manayunk/Norristown Line is a commuter rail service in Southeastern Pennsylvania, and one of the 13 lines in SEPTA's Regional Rail network. It has the fourth highest ridership and the highest operating ratio (58%) on the SEPTA Regional Rail ...
, and the
Schuylkill River Trail
The Schuylkill River Trail ( , ) is a multi-use trail along the banks of the Schuylkill River in southeastern Pennsylvania. Partially complete as of 2018, the trail is ultimately planned to run about from the river's headwaters in Schuylkill Co ...
on the
Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge, the freeway heads into
Plymouth Township. In Plymouth Township, the route has interchanges with
Ridge Pike
Ridge Pike is a major historic road in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania that opened in 1706 that originally connected Wissahickon Creek to Perkiomen Creek. Inside Philadelphia, it is called Ridge Avenue. Going westward, it traverses many easter ...
and Chemical Road before passing over Norfolk Southern's
Morrisville Line and reaching an interchange serving
Germantown Pike
Germantown Pike (also known as Germantown Avenue for a portion of its length) is a historic road in Pennsylvania that opened in 1687, running from Philadelphia northwest to Collegeville. The road is particularly notable for the "imposing mansi ...
and Plymouth Road in
Plymouth Meeting.
The entire length of the Blue Route is designated the Blue Route Scenic Byway, a
Pennsylvania Scenic Byway.
Plymouth Meeting to Clarks Summit
In Plymouth Meeting, I-476 comes to the Mid-County Interchange, where it enters the
Pennsylvania Turnpike
The Pennsylvania Turnpike (Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike) is a toll highway operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A controlled-access highway, it runs for across the state. The turnpike's w ...
system and has a mainline toll plaza before coming to an interchange with
I-276 (which follows the mainline of the Pennsylvania Turnpike), heading north from here as the six-lane Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The route continues through the Philadelphia suburbs, passing over CSX's
Stony Creek Branch rail line, and reaches an interchange with
PA 63 near
Lansdale
Lansdale is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a densely-populated commuter town, with many residents traveling daily to Philadelphia using SEPTA Regional Rai ...
that serves the
North Penn Valley
The North Penn Valley is a region of Philadelphia suburbs and exurbs in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is somewhat congruent with the North Penn School District. It contains the boroughs of North Wales, Lansdale and Hatfield as well as the s ...
region. Past this interchange, the route enters a more rural setting of woods and farms, narrowing to four lanes before crossing into
Bucks County
Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...
and coming to an interchange with
PA 663 near
Quakertown. The Northeast Extension continues northwest into
Lehigh County, part of the
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley (), known colloquially as The Valley, is a geographic region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County and Northampton County in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a component valley of the Great Appalachian Valley bound to the no ...
metropolitan area, past the PA 663 interchange. Here, the road heads into more developed areas and passes over Norfolk Southern's
Reading Line. The route has ramps to the dual-access Allentown Service Plaza in
Upper Macungie Township, and, just north of it, I-476 reaches an interchange with
US 22 (Lehigh Valley Thruway) near
Allentown Allentown may refer to several places in the United States and topics related to them:
*Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California
*Allentown, Georgia, a town in Wilkinson County
*Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Taze ...
, which offers an indirect connection to
I-78
Interstate 78 (I-78) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Northeastern United States, running from I-81 northeast of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, through Allentown to western and northern New Jersey and terminating at the Holland T ...
and
PA 309.
North of Allentown, the route crosses under Norfolk Southern's
C&F Secondary rail line and runs through farmland with some development. The road passes under
Blue Mountain in the
Lehigh Tunnel
The Lehigh Tunnel is a pair of road tunnels that carries the Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension (Interstate 476) under Blue Mountain north from U.S. Route 22 in the Lehigh Valley to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area between mileposts 70.7 to ...
and enters
Carbon County in the
Pocono Mountains
The Pocono Mountains, commonly referred to as the Poconos , are a geographical, geological, and cultural region in Northeastern Pennsylvania. They overlook the Delaware River and Delaware Water Gap to the east, Lake Wallenpaupack to the north, ...
region. Here, I-476 crosses over the
Lehigh River and Norfolk Southern's
Lehigh Line before it has an interchange with
US 209
U.S. Route 209 (US 209) is a long U.S. Highway in the states of Pennsylvania and New York. Although the route is a spur of US 9, US 209 never intersects US 9, coming within five miles of the route and making the short ...
near
Lehighton. Continuing through mountainous areas, the route has ramps to the dual-access Hickory Run Service Plaza prior to coming to a diamond interchange with
PA 903. Past here, I-476 cuts through
Hickory Run State Park
Hickory Run State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Kidder and Penn Forest Townships in Carbon County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is spread across the Pocono Mountains. The park is easily accessible from Interstate 476 and ...
before reaching an interchange with
PA 940 providing a connection to
I-80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
just to the north of the state park.
The route continues through mountainous terrain, heading into
Luzerne County
Luzerne County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is Northeastern Pennsylvania's second-largest county by total area. As of ...
at a crossing of the Lehigh River and coming to an interchange with
PA 115 in
Bear Creek that provides access to nearby
Wilkes-Barre
Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the s ...
.
The route comes to a mainline toll plaza near
Pittston that marks the northern end of the toll ticket system along the Northeast Extension.
A short distance later, an interchange with
PA 315 provides indirect access to
I-81
Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Isla ...
and
Scranton
Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...
.
Past this interchange, I-476 crosses under a
Luzerne and Susquehanna Railway line before it enters
Lackawanna County
Lackawanna County (; unm, Lèkaohane) is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in Northeastern Pennsylvania and had a population of 215,896 as of the 2020 census. Its county seat and largest city is Scranton.
The county ...
. Here, the route has a bridge over a Luzerne and Susquehanna Railway line and heads through built-up areas of the
Wyoming Valley
The Wyoming Valley is a historic industrialized region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The region is historically notable for its influence in helping fuel the American Industrial Revolution with its many anthracite coal-mines. As a metropolitan ...
as it skirts around Scranton, passing under I-81 before coming to a bridge over Norfolk Southern's
Sunbury Line
The Sunbury Line (formerly known as Sunbury Subdivision) is a rail line owned and operated by Norfolk Southern Railway which in turn is owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. The line travels from Sunbury, Pennsylvania, to Binghamton, New Yo ...
, the
Lackawanna River
The Lackawanna River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed August 8, 2011 tributary of the Susquehanna River in Northeastern Pennsylvania. It flows through a region of th ...
, and a
Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad
The Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad , sometimes shortened to Reading and Northern Railroad, is a regional railroad in eastern Pennsylvania. Its headquarters is in Port Clinton. The RBMN provides freight service on of track. Its mainl ...
line. I-476 reaches a mainline all-electronic toll plaza and an exit to Keyser Avenue in
Taylor
Taylor, Taylors or Taylor's may refer to:
People
* Taylor (surname)
** List of people with surname Taylor
* Taylor (given name), including Tayla and Taylah
* Taylor sept, a branch of Scottish clan Cameron
* Justice Taylor (disambiguation)
Pl ...
. North of Scranton in
Clarks Summit, the route crosses a valley on the , John E. Fitzgerald Memorial Bridge,
passing over Norfolk Southern's Sunbury Line,
US 6/
US 11, and
PA 407. Past the bridge, I-476 comes to a
hairpin curve and reaches a mainline all-electronic toll plaza before it ends at an interchange with connections to I-81, US 6, and US 11. US 6 joins the turnpike for less than to connect between I-81 and US 11. As this is beyond the Clarks Summit toll plaza, no toll is collected on this short segment.
Tolls
The Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike uses
all-electronic tolling
Open road tolling (ORT), also called all-electronic tolling, cashless tolling, or free-flow tolling, is the collection of tolls on toll roads without the use of toll booths. An electronic toll collection system is usually used instead. The ma ...
, with tolls payable by
toll by plate
Video tolling (sometimes referred to as video billing, toll by plate, pay by mail, or pay by plate) is a form of electronic toll collection, which uses video or still images of a vehicle's license plate to identify a vehicle liable to pay a road ...
(which uses
automatic license plate recognition
Automatic number-plate recognition (ANPR; see also other names below) is a technology that uses optical character recognition on images to read vehicle registration plates to create vehicle location data. It can use existing closed-circuit tel ...
to take a photo of the vehicle's license plate and mail a bill to the vehicle owner) or
E-ZPass. Tolls along the section between the Mid-County and Wyoming Valley toll plazas, along with the mainline Pennsylvania Turnpike between Warrendale and Neshaminy Falls, are based on distance traveled. Mainline toll plazas are also located at Keyser Avenue and Clarks Summit, charging a flat rate using toll by plate or E-ZPass. There are no tolls on exit ramps between Wyoming Valley and Clarks Summit. , it costs a passenger vehicle $23.70 to travel the length of the Northeast Extension between Mid-County and Wyoming Valley using toll by plate and $11.50 using E-ZPass. The Keyser Avenue and Clarks Summit toll plazas cost $2.80 using toll by plate and $1.30 using E-ZPass for passenger vehicles.
Until March 2020, the road used the
ticket system
A ticket system, also known as a closed toll collection system, is a system used on some toll roads in which a user pays a toll rate based on the distance traveled from their originating entrance to their destination exit.
The correct toll is de ...
method of tolling between the Mid-County and Wyoming Valley toll plazas along with the mainline Pennsylvania Turnpike between Warrendale and Neshaminy Falls.
With the ticket system, a motorist received a ticket upon entering the turnpike at an interchange and paid the fare and surrendered the ticket upon exiting. If a motorist lost the ticket, the turnpike charged the highest fare to the exit where the motorist left.
Cash, credit cards, and E-ZPass were accepted at traditional toll plazas.
On April 29, 2018, the turnpike commission implemented all-electronic tolling at the Keyser Avenue and Clarks Summit toll plazas. All-electronic tolling was originally scheduled to be implemented on the entire length of the Northeast Extension in the later part of 2021.
However, in March 2020, the switch was made early as a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. The all-electronic tolling system on the turnpike will initially use existing toll booths at exits, along with existing equipment at all-electronic tolling interchanges, until mainline toll gantries between interchanges are constructed. Mainline toll gantries are planned to begin operation by 2022.
Services
Emergency assistance and information
The Northeast Extension formerly had a
call box every mile () for its entire length. In September 2017, the turnpike commission began removing the call boxes due to increased mobile phone usage making the call boxes obsolete. Motorists may also dial *11 on their mobile phones. First responder services are available to all turnpike customers via the
GEICO Safety Patrol program. The safety patrol program, which is free, looks for disabled motorists, debris, and accidents along the roadway and provides assistance. The patrol service is available 24 hours every day of the year. Each patrol vehicle covers a stretch of the turnpike.
Towing services are available from authorized service garages located near the highway.
Pennsylvania State Police Troop T patrols the Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension. It has headquarters in
Highspire (along the mainline turnpike) and a substation at Pocono.
The
Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) is an agency created in 1937 to construct, finance, operate, and maintain the Pennsylvania Turnpike (both the mainline and the Northeast Extension). The commission consists of five members. Four membe ...
(PTC) broadcasts current roadway, traffic, and weather conditions via
highway advisory radio
A travelers' information station (TIS), also called highway advisory radio (HAR) by the United States Department of Transportation, is a licensed low-powered non-commercial radio station, used to broadcast information to the general public, inclu ...
transmitters at each exit. Broadcasts are available on 1640 kHz AM and can be received approximately away from each exit.
The
511PA travel information service provides alerts, an interactive map, weather information, and
traffic cameras to motorists. There are
variable-message signs
A variable- (also changeable-, electronic-, or dynamic-) message sign, often abbreviated VMS, CMS, or DMS, and in the UK known as a matrix sign,
is an electronic traffic sign often used on roadways to give travelers information about special ...
located along the roadway that provide information to motorists such as accidents, construction, weather, and traffic congestion.
Service plazas
The Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike has two
service plazas at Allentown and Hickory Run. The two service plazas are accessible by both northbound and southbound traffic. The service plazas offer multiple
fast food restaurant
A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast-food cuisine and has minimal table service. The food served in fast-food restaurants is typically ...
s, a
Sunoco gas station, and a
7-Eleven convenience store. Other amenities are available such as an ATM, E-ZPass sales, free cellphone charging,
Pennsylvania Lottery
The Pennsylvania Lottery is operated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Lottery was created by the Pennsylvania General Assembly on August 26, 1971; two months later, Henry Kaplan was appointed as its first executive director. The Penns ...
sales, picnic areas, restrooms, tourist information, Travel Board information centers, and Wi-Fi. The Allentown plaza contains a seasonal
farmers' market
A farmers' market (or farmers market according to the AP stylebook, also farmer's market in the Cambridge Dictionary) is a physical retail marketplace intended to sell foods directly by farmers to consumers. Farmers' markets may be indoors or o ...
. Both plazas offer conventional
gasoline
Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organi ...
and
diesel fuel
Diesel fuel , also called diesel oil, is any liquid fuel specifically designed for use in a diesel engine, a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition takes place without a spark as a result of compression of the inlet air and ...
. The Sunoco and 7-Eleven locations are operated by 7-Eleven itself while the restaurants and general upkeep of the service plazas are operated by
Applegreen
Applegreen is an Irish company founded in 1992 that operates 620 petrol stations in Ireland, the UK and the US. It is a major petrol retailer in Ireland, and operates convenience stores and motorway service areas. Applegreen's headquarters are ...
.
In 2006,
HMSHost
HMSHost is an American highway and airport food-service company, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Italian company Autogrill S.p.A. , Steve Johnson is the CEO of HMSHost.
History
The company's origins are in the Van Noy Railway News and Hotel C ...
was awarded a contract to reconstruct the service plazas along the turnpike.
The reconstruction of the service plazas, which was to cost more than $150 million (equivalent to $ in ), included a
food court layout and modernized restrooms. The Allentown service plaza was rebuilt between September 2007 and May 2008 while the Hickory Run service plaza was rebuilt between January 2009 and November 2010.
History
Mid-County Expressway
Originally planned as far back as 1929, the Mid-County Expressway was later proposed by the
Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) is an agency created in 1937 to construct, finance, operate, and maintain the Pennsylvania Turnpike (both the mainline and the Northeast Extension). The commission consists of five members. Four membe ...
as the "Chester Extension" of the Pennsylvania Turnpike in 1954. After the advent of the
Interstate Highway System
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. T ...
, the project was transferred to the
Pennsylvania Department of Highways
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) oversees transportation issues in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The administrator of PennDOT is the Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation, currently Yassmin Gramian. Presently, Pe ...
to be built as part of the system, designating it first as Interstate 495 (I-495) and later as Interstate 480 (I-480), as I-76 was designated as
I-80S at the time. The present-day I-476 designation was assigned on February 6, 1964, when I-80S was renumbered as I-76.
The road received its nickname from a 1958 location report indicating various proposed geographic configurations of an expressway through
Delaware County with lines of various colors on a map. The "blue route" through the
Crum Creek
Crum Creek (from the Dutch, meaning "crooked creek") is a creek in Delaware County and Chester County, Pennsylvania, flowing approximately , generally in a southward direction and draining into the Delaware River in Eddystone, Pennsylvania. I ...
valley won out over other contenders, which included a more easterly "red route" and "yellow route" and a more westerly "green route".
As one of the most controversial Interstate Highways in Pennsylvania, construction of I-476 began in 1967 but would take decades to build due to litigation between the
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) oversees transportation issues in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The administrator of PennDOT is the Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation, currently Yassmin Gramian. Presently, Pe ...
(PennDOT) and several communities in the road's path over environmental concerns. Two sections of the road in Radnor Township and in
Lower Merion Township
Lower Merion Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Philadelphia Main Line. The township's name originates with the county of Merioneth in north Wales. Merioneth is an English-language transcription of the ...
were built in 1970 but remained closed to traffic as they did not connect to any other roads. The section of I-476 between I-76 and Chemical Road opened to traffic in 1979 while the section between I-95 and MacDade Boulevard opened to traffic in August 1988. The road opened between Chemical Road and Plymouth Road in August 1991 while the final section of I-476 between MacDade Boulevard and I-76 was opened in December 1991.
An agreement in 1985 led to many environmental compromises in the road's design, including a downsized four-lane design south of PA 3 (although a part of the span between exits 9 and 5 has a third lane on the southbound side),
ramp meters, and scenic route status, prohibiting the erection of advertisement billboards along the entire freeway portion. The Radnor Gateway Enhancement Strategy was implemented to install largescale sculpture elements by artist
William P. Reimann, most notably the stone griffin and cairn at exit 13. While the redesigned highway was largely well-received, the constriction to four lanes has led to bottleneck conditions in the area, and many communities that originally opposed the road have now called for its widening. ''
The Philadelphia Inquirer
''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...
'' dubbed I-476 "the most costly, most bitterly opposed highway in Pennsylvania history" due to the decades of opposition it garnered.
Plans to build an interchange connecting I-476 (Mid-County Expressway) to the Pennsylvania Turnpike were made; the turnpike commission approved a contract to build the interchange in March 1989.
That June, a losing bidder decided to challenge the turnpike commission, saying it violated female and minority contracting rules regarding the percentage of these employees that were used for the project. Under this rule, bidders were supposed to have at least 12 percent of contracts to minority-owned companies and at least four percent to female-owned companies. The losing bidder had 12.4 percent of the contracts to minority companies and 4.2 percent to female-owned companies while the winning bidder had 6.1 percent and 3.7 percent respectively. The turnpike commission decided to rebid the contract but was sued by the original contractor. This dispute delayed the construction of the interchange.
The contract was rebid in November 1989 after the
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It also claims to be the oldest appellate court in the United States, a claim that is disputed by the Massachusetts Supreme Ju ...
permitted it.
The interchange between I-476 and the turnpike mainline was completed in November 1992; the ramps to the Northeast Extension opened a month later.
An official ribbon-cutting took place on December 15, 1992.
In the 2000s, the road underwent a rehabilitation project, including paving, bridge repair, and ramp maintenance of the entire length of the freeway between I-95 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The section between I-95 and PA 3 was repaved in 2005 while the section between PA 3 and I-76 was repaved in 2007. The section between I-76 and I-276, which was completely reconstructed, was finished in the end of 2011.
Northeast Extension
In 1953, an extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike from the mainline near Plymouth Meeting north through
Northeastern Pennsylvania
Northeastern Pennsylvania (NEPA) is a geographic region of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania that includes the Pocono Mountains, the Endless Mountains, and the industrial cities of Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Hazleton, Nanticoke, and Car ...
to the
New York state line near Binghamton, New York, was proposed.
Groundbreaking for the Northeastern Extension occurred on March 25, 1954, in White Haven, Pennsylvania, White Haven, with Governor John S. Fine and commission chair Thomas J. Evans present. The Northeast Extension was planned to run from the mainline Pennsylvania Turnpike in Plymouth Meeting north to a temporary terminus at Scranton.
In April 1954, $233 million (equivalent to $ in ) in bonds were issued to build the Northeastern Extension along with the Delaware River–Turnpike Toll Bridge on the mainline Pennsylvania Turnpike.
The Northeast Extension was built with a median in order to save money.
[Interstate 476#Dakelman, Dakelman and Schorr, p. 105.] Due to the mountainous terrain it passed through, a large amount of earthwork was necessary to build the road along with the construction of large bridges.
[Interstate 476#Dakelman, Dakelman and Schorr, p. 106.] Among the bridges built was the Clarks Summit Bridge (since renamed for John J. Fitzgerald, Turnpike engineer and superintendent) over US 6/US 11, which at the time was the tallest bridge on the Pennsylvania Turnpike system at .
[Interstate 476#Dakelman, Dakelman and Schorr, p. 107.] The Northeast Extension also included the two-lane Lehigh Tunnel under Blue Mountain. The tunnel was originally going to be named for commission chair Evans but was changed when he was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the commission of $19 million (equivalent to $ in ).
The roadway opened between Plymouth Meeting and the Lehigh Valley interchange near Allentown on November 23, 1955. The highway was extended north to a temporary interchange at Emerald, Pennsylvania, Emerald on December 28 of that year.
[Interstate 476#Cupper, Cupper, p. 31.] The Northeast Extension was opened between Emerald and Wyoming Valley on April 1, 1957.
The entire length of the Northeast Extension was finished on November 7, 1957, with the completion of the northernmost part between Wyoming Valley and Scranton.
The part of the Northeast Extension between Scranton and the New York state line was not built as part of the Pennsylvania Turnpike system but rather the Interstate Highway System as I-81.
[Interstate 476#Dakelman, Dakelman and Schorr, p. 108.] At the northern terminus, the Northeast Extension narrowed to two lanes along the northbound offramp at Scranton to come to its northern terminus, with an abandoned short spur of the mainline heading north. A pair of Trumpet interchange, trumpet interchanges were built to connect the Northeast Extension and I-81.
In 1974, the roadway was designated PA 9.
When it first opened, traffic on the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike was light.
By the 1970s, traffic along the roadway increased with the completion of the connecting I-80 and the rising popularity of the Pocono Mountains as a vacation destination. As a result, the two-lane Lehigh Tunnel faced serious congestion. Plans were made to either bypass the tunnel or add a second tube. The turnpike commission decided it would build a second tunnel as the cost was lower than building a bypass.
[Interstate 476#Cupper, Cupper, p. 40.] In 1988, a $37-million (equivalent to $ in ) contract was awarded to build the second tube.
[Interstate 476#Cupper, Cupper, p. 46.] Groundbreaking for the tunnel took place on February 14, 1989, with Governor Robert P. Casey in attendance.
Excavation of the new tunnel began in July of that year. Construction of the second tube utilized the New Austrian tunneling method, which reduced the cost of the tunnel by $5 million to $6 million (equivalent to $ to $ in ). It was the first tunnel in the US to use this construction method. The second tube at Lehigh Tunnel opened on November 22, 1991, with Governor Casey in attendance leading a line of antique cars. Construction of the tunnel cost $45 million (equivalent to $ in ). The new tube is used for southbound traffic while the original tube carries northbound traffic. The newer tunnel is wider, higher, and brighter than the original.
On February 1, 1995, the Keyser Avenue interchange near Scranton was slated to open at a cost of $22.4 million (equivalent to $ in ). Construction of this interchange also involved constructing a new mainline flat-rate toll barrier near the new interchange.
On November 1, 1996, the Northeast Extension was added to the Interstate Highway System as a northern extension of I-476, replacing the PA 9 designation along the road. The addition of the second tube at the Lehigh Tunnel along with new guardrails and line striping was necessary for the toll road to become an Interstate. It was hoped that the Interstate designation would bring economic development and tourism to the areas served by the roadway.
This extension resulted in I-476 surpassing the
I-495 Interstate 495 (I-495) is the designation for several Interstate Highways in the United States, all of which are related to Interstate 95, listed from south to north:
* The Capital Beltway, a beltway around Washington, D.C., running through Virgin ...
in
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
as the longest auxiliary Interstate Highway,
though it could be contested for this title in the future by
I-369 in
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
.
The tickets along the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike were originally handed out by person. In 1987, machines started to replace humans in distributing tickets.
In 1990, an electronic toll collection system was proposed for the Pennsylvania Turnpike, where a motorist would create an account and use an electronic device that would be read from an electronic tollbooth. The motorist would be billed later.
The multi-state electronic tolling system, which was to be called E-ZPass, was planned to be implemented by 1998.
The planned installation date was later pushed back to 2000.
On December 2, 2000, E-ZPass debuted along the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike between Mid-County and Lehigh Valley.
On December 15, 2001, E-ZPass was extended to include the entire length of the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
Commercial vehicles were allowed to start using E-ZPass on December 14, 2002.
On November 24, 2004, the day before Thanksgiving (United States), Thanksgiving, 2,000 Teamsters Union employees went on Strike action, strike, after contract negotiations failed. This was the first strike in the history of the roadway. As this is usually one of the busiest traffic days in the US, to avoid traffic jams, tolls were waived for the rest of the day.
Starting on November 25, turnpike management personnel collected flat-rate passenger tolls of $2 and commercial tolls of $15 from cash customers on the ticketed system, while E-ZPass customers were charged the lesser of the actual toll or the same flat rates.
The strike ended after seven days when both sides reached an agreement on November 30, 2004. Normal toll collection resumed December 1, 2004.
In 2007, the turnpike commission announced plans to widen the Northeast Extension to six lanes between Mid-County and Lansdale.
The project divided this stretch of highway into two sections. Work on the southern section began in January 2008 with the replacement of two bridges over the Northeast Extension to accommodate the widened highway. Construction on the actual widening phase commenced in January 2011. Completion was originally planned in 2013; however, construction fell a year behind schedule.
The southern section finished up in October 2014, while work on the northern section started in May 2014. By this point, the project scope was expanded to include the Lansdale interchange itself, the roadway to a point north of the interchange, and two new E-ZPass-only ramps at the Lansdale interchange to relieve congestion at the toll plaza. This new northbound exit ramp opened December 4, 2016, and the companion southbound onramp opened a week later. Construction along the northern section was originally planned to finish by the end of 2016 but was delayed until mid-2017. Construction was substantially completed, with all six lanes open, by August 31, 2017.
Once widening was completed from Mid-County to Lansdale, a similar project began on the next segment of highway, from Lansdale to Quakertown. As done on the first project, the Lansdale–Quakertown segment was rebuilt in two sections, with a southern half started in late 2017, with widening to six lanes and full shoulders.
Advance work began in early 2013 with replacement of several bridges in this area north of Lansdale, with work on the actual widening beginning in late 2017. Widening of this section was completed in late 2020.
The turnpike commission has stated its intention of continuing the widening effort past Quakertown all the way north to the Lehigh Valley interchange at milepost 56, although it will take until the late 2020s to get it done.
In 1990, plans were made to build an interchange at PA 903 in Carbon County. A bill authorizing construction of this interchange was signed into law by Governor Casey in July of that year.
Plans for this interchange were cancelled by the turnpike commission in 1995.
In 2006, plans for an interchange at PA 903 were resurrected, with the proposed interchange to be all-electronic, in that it will only accept E-ZPass.
Construction on the $23-million (equivalent to $ in ) interchange began in the middle of 2008.
The interchange opened to traffic on June 30, 2015.
On April 28, 2016, plans were announced for a "Scranton Beltway" to use I-476 as a bypass for I-81 around the heavily congested segment through Scranton and its suburbs. The turnpike between the two I-81 interchanges carries an average of 10,000 vehicles per day vs. 70,000 on the parallel segment of I-81. This project will build two high-speed connections between I-476 and I-81: one south of Scranton in Dupont, Pennsylvania, Dupont and one north of Scranton in South Abington Township, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, South Abington Township. Tolls on the connections will be paid with E-ZPass or toll by plate. Construction of this project is expected to cost $160 million. In 2021, design work on the project resumed, with construction expected to begin in 2025.
Howard M. Sexton, a 70-year-old truck driver from
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
, was killed in the southbound Lehigh Tunnel on February 21, 2018, when an electrical conduit broke free from the tunnel's ceiling and fell through the windshield of his truck, striking him in the head. In a preliminary report issued on May 1, 2018, the National Transportation Safety Board revealed that a section of conduit fell into the path of Sexton's truck after the steel support system for the conduits, which were suspended from the apex of the tunnel arch directly over the travel lanes, failed. The tunnel had last been inspected in 2016, at which time an inspector found evidence of corrosion on several of the steel support straps.
Exit list
The old exit numbers (31 and upward) on the turnpike Northeast Extension were a continuation of old exit numbers 1 through 30 on the east–west turnpike. On the east–west turnpike, the interchange with I-476 was old exit 25A because it was between old exits 25 and 26 on the east–west turnpike.
See also
*
*
References
External links
I-476 on Kurumi.comInterstate Guide - I-476I-476 at AARoads.comPennsylvania Roads - I-476The Roads of Metro Philadelphia: Mid-County Expressway ("Blue Route") (I-476)The Roads of Metro Philadelphia: Pennsylvania Turnpike - Northeast Extension (I-476)Official Pennsylvania Turnpike website
{{Authority control
Interstate Highways in Pennsylvania, 76-4
Auxiliary Interstate Highways, 76-4
Toll roads in Pennsylvania
Tolled sections of Interstate Highways
Interstate 76 (Ohio–New Jersey), 4
Transportation in Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Transportation in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Transportation in Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Transportation in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
Transportation in Carbon County, Pennsylvania
Transportation in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
Transportation in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania