Pennsylvania Route 56 (PA 56) is a

state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...

located in west central

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, ...

. Its western terminus is at the eastern end of the

C.L. Schmitt Bridge The C.L. Schmitt Bridge (commonly known as the New Kensington Bridge or the Ninth Street Bridge) is a truss bridge A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usual ...

New Kensington New Kensington, known locally as New Ken, is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. It is situated along the Allegheny River, northeast of Pittsburgh. The population was 12,170 at the 2010 census. History Like much of Westmoreland Cou ...

. Its eastern terminus is on U.S. Route 30 (US 30) west of

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

Route description

PA 56 starts at the intersection of Industrial Boulevard and 9th Street in New Kensington, Westmoreland County; this is also the eastern end of the C.L. Schmitt Bridge, across the

Allegheny River The Allegheny River ( ) is a long headwater stream of the Ohio River in western Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York. The Allegheny River runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border northwesterly into ...

from the PA 28 freeway. In New Kensington, PA 56 first heads south along Industrial Boulevard before turning east onto 7th Street where it first encounters a short city-maintained section of road before transitioning back to state maintenance. In the east part of New Kensington, it has a

concurrency Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

with PA 366 before entering the city of

Lower Burrell Lower Burrell is a city in Westmoreland County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Located approximately 18 miles northeast of downtown Pittsburgh, it is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. The population was 11,761 at the 2010 census. The po ...

. Also in Westmoreland County, it has concurrencies with PA 356 and PA 66 Alternate. After crossing the Kiskiminetas River, PA 56 merges with PA 66 for a short distance in Armstrong County. It then travels east and eventually merges with PA 156, crossing into

Indiana County Indiana County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the west central part of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 83,246. Its county seat is Indiana. Indiana County comprises the Indiana, PA Mi ...

. At this point, it merges with US 422 and heads toward

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. In Indiana, US 422 and PA 56 become a short freeway. At the U.S. 119 exit, PA 56 merges with

US 119 U.S. Route 119 (US 119) is a spur of US 19. It is a north–south route (on a northeast-southwest alignment) that was an original United States highway of 1926. It is Corridor G of the Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS) east of US ...

, heading south. PA 56 ends its concurrency with US 119 in

Homer City Homer City is a borough in Indiana County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,746 at the 2020 census. Homer City is located in the Indiana metro area. The community was named for the famous Greek poet Homer by founder William Wilso ...

and continues east on a two-lane road. Approaching

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , "Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Pri ...

, it crosses

US 22 U.S. Route 22 (US 22) is a west–east route and is one of the original United States highways of 1926, running from Cincinnati, Ohio, at U.S. Route 27, US 27, U.S. Route 42, US 42, U.S. Route 127, US 127, and U.S. Route 52, US 52 to Newark, New ...

at an interchange. The route then enters Westmoreland County again briefly, passing through its extreme northeastern corner. It is at this point, that PA 56 crosses through Seward. A short time after passing through Seward, it crosses into Cambria County. Continuing east, it travels along the southern side of the

Conemaugh River The Conemaugh River is a long tributary of the Kiskiminetas River in Westmoreland, Indiana, and Cambria counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The name means 'Otter Creek', originating from the Unami-Lenape language word ''kwənəmuxkw' ...

through the Conemaugh Gap. It then emerges into the city of Johnstown. PA 56 travels through the heart of the West End section of Johnstown on two-lane city streets. It then merges with PA 403 on Broad Street, a four-lane road containing many traffic signals. At the final signal, it breaks away from PA 403 and becomes a freeway entitled Johnstown Expressway. PA 56 enters the four-lane expressway and meets US 219. It eventually exits US 219 at Scalp Avenue, the original interchange, and continues east toward

Windber Windber is a borough in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States, about south of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Johnstown. It was at one time a place of industrial activities which included coal mining, lumbering, and ...

. The route enters Somerset County at Windber. Once past Windber, PA 56 returns to two lanes. It enters Bedford County at the top of Laurel Ridge at above sea level. The descent down the eastern slope contains a dangerous hairpin curve that has been the site of many accidents over the years. It then crosses Interstate 99 (I-99)

US 220 U.S. Route 220 (US 220) is a spur route of US 20. It runs in a north–south layout in the eastern United States, unlike its parent route as well as conventionally even-numbered highways which run east-west. US 220 extends for fr ...

at an interchange near Cessna. After a short distance, PA 56 crosses over I-99 and US 220, then later passes under 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 we ...

(

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 c ...

and I-70). The route ends at a

T intersection A three-way junction (or three-way intersection) is a type of road intersection with three arms. A Y junction (or Y intersection) generally has three arms of equal size coming at an acute or obtuse angle to each other; while a T junction (or T ...

with

US 30 U.S. Route 30 or U.S. Highway 30 (US 30) is an east–west main route in the system of the United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. With a length of , it is the third longest ...

in Wolfsburg, west of Bedford.Google Maps Directions - Pennsylvania Route 56
/ref>

Major intersections

PA 56 Truck

Current

Pennsylvania Route 56 Truck is a truck route in the

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

industrial suburb of New Kensington, Pennsylvania. The route's western terminus also marks the end of its parent, as each formulate a different way of travel for those who have crossed the

. While Route 56 makes several turns as it passes through the stop light-filled center of the community, the truck route runs as the four-lane Industrial Boulevard along the

, before turning back north as it is multiplexed with Pennsylvania Route 366.

Former

Pennsylvania Route 56 Truck was an east-west truck route bypassing a weight-restricted bridge over Little Brush Creek in Brush Valley, on which trucks over 29 tons and combination loads over 40 tons were prohibited. It was formed and established in 2013 and it used to follow

and

. As of October 2015, the "Truck PA 56" signs were removed off of US 22 and US 119.

References

External links

Pennsylvania Highways: PA 56
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pennsylvania Route 056

056 56 may refer to: * 56 (number) * one of the years 56 BC, AD 56, 1856 Events January–March * January 8 – Borax deposits are discovered in large quantities by John Veatch in California. * January 23 – American paddle steame ...

Limited-access roads in Pennsylvania Transportation in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania Transportation in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania Transportation in Indiana County, Pennsylvania Transportation in Cambria County, Pennsylvania Transportation in Somerset County, Pennsylvania Transportation in Bedford County, Pennsylvania Transportation in Johnstown, Pennsylvania