Pennsylvania Route 715 (PA 715) is a north–south

state route 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 entirely in

Monroe County Monroe County may refer to seventeen counties in the United States, all named for James Monroe: * Monroe County, Alabama *Monroe County, Arkansas * Monroe County, Florida * Monroe County, Georgia *Monroe County, Illinois *Monroe County, Indian ...

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 southern terminus is at U.S. Route 209 (US 209) in the Chestnuthill Township hamlet of Brodheadsville. The northern terminus is at PA 191 in the Paradise Township hamlet of Henryville. PA 715 also intersects

Interstate 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 ...

(I-80) in Tannersville at Exit 299. The route is a two-lane undivided road running through forested areas of 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, W ...

. The road was paved between 1930 and the 1940s. PA 715 was designated to its present alignment in 1963.

Route description

PA 715 begins at an intersection 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 ...

in the community of Brodheadsville in Chestnuthill Township, heading north on a two-lane undivided road. The road passes a mix of rural homes and fields before crossing

McMichael Creek McMichael Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of Pocono Creek in the Poconos of eastern Pennsylvania in the United States.Gertler, Edward. ' ...

and running parallel to the east of the creek. PA 715 continues into forested areas with a few housing developments. Farther north, the route passes a mix of farms, woods, and homes, crossing the creek again. The road comes to the community of McMichaels and makes a sharp turn to the east, heading across McMichael Creek a third time. PA 715 enters Jackson Township and heads into wooded areas of residential subdivisions as it turns northeast and passes Grubers Lake and Trout Lake. After the latter, the road heads more to the north and passes through Reeders. The route heads northeast into Pocono Township and runs through woods with some commercial development, passing to the southeast of the

Northampton Community College Northampton Community College is a public community college in Pennsylvania with campuses in Bethlehem in Northampton County and Tannersville in Monroe County. The college, founded in 1967, also has satellite locations in the south side of Bet ...

Monroe Campus before reaching to an interchange with

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 ...

Northern terminus of Pennsylvania State Route 715

From here, PA 715 intersects Sullivan Trail, which provides access to Pocono Premium Outlets,

Camelback Mountain Resort Camelback Mountain Resort is a ski and snowboard resort located in the Tannersville, Pennsylvania in the Pocono Mountains. Opened in December 1963, Camelback is the largest ski resort in the Poconos. In the 1950s, when developers were worki ...

Big Pocono State Park Big Pocono State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Jackson and Pocono townships in Monroe County, Pennsylvania in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The park is located on Camelback Mountain and is maintained jointly by the Pennsylvania Department ...

, and westbound I-80. After this, the route crosses

Pocono Creek Pocono Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of Brodhead Creek in the Poconos of eastern Pennsylvania in the United States.Gertler, Edward. ''K ...

and forms a short

wrong-way concurrency A concurrency in a road network is an instance of one physical roadway bearing two or more different route numbers. When two roadways share the same right-of-way, it is sometimes called a common section or commons. Other terminology for a concurre ...

with PA 611 in Tannersville. Past PA 611, the highway continues northeast through dense forests with occasional areas of wooded housing developments. In the community of Meisertown, PA 715 intersects the eastern terminus of PA 314. Following this intersection, the route continues into Paradise Township and passes through more forests before ending at PA 191 in the community of Henryville.

History

When routes were first legislated in Pennsylvania in 1911, what is now PA 715 was not given a number. By 1930, the present-day route was an unpaved road between US 209 in Brodheadsville and McMichaels and a paved road between McMichaels and US 611 in Tannersville. The road between US 611 in Tannersville and PA 90 (now PA 191) in Henryville existed as a paved road by 1940. In the 1940s, the road between Brodheadsville and McMichaels was paved. PA 715 was designated on April 8, 1963 to follow its current alignment between US 209 in Brodheadsville and PA 191 in Henryville. PA 715 was signed in order to provide a route number at the I-80 interchange in Tannersville.

Major intersections

PA 715 Truck

Pennsylvania Route 715 Truck is a

truck route A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...

of PA 715 that bypasses a weight-restricted bridge over the Pocono Creek in Pocono Township, on which trucks over 21 tons and combination loads over 25 tons are prohibited. The northbound truck route follows Sullivan Trail, I-80 west, and PA 611 south. The southbound truck route follows PA 611 south, PA 33 south, and I-80 west. It was signed in 2013.

References

External links

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Pennsylvania Highways: PA 715

715 __NOTOC__ Year 715 ( DCCXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 715 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...