Pennsylvania Highways Blog - Announcements

Route 2.0 Again Meets Web 2.0

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 20:21:40 -0500

Last April, I created new avenues of communication with three of the most used social networking sites on the Internet today. So far the Twitter account has 678 followers, the Facebook page has 282 fans, and the YouTube channel has 14 subscribers. Today I created a Pennsylvania Highways presence on three more social networking platforms that will hopefully have the same success as the first three.

Vimeo
Everyone knows YouTube, but not everyone has heard of this service. The difference between the two services is that this one provides high bit rates, resolutions, and full HD support. It has gained a reputation for catering to an artistic crowd because of these attributes, so I will use this to showcase special videos. However, I still have the problem as with the YouTube Channel in that I need a new, modern camcorder. Basically this idea is still on the burner as well.

http://www.vimeo.com/pahighways

Delicious
Social networking has been around much longer with such sites as this which has been around since 2003 when it was known as Del.icio.us. Social bookmarking is one facet where people can share items just like on any other platform. Up to now, I had been putting any road-related news articles on the Facebook fan page so this will take over that job and make the Facebook page a lot cleaner.

http://delicious.com/pahighways

Tumblr
A buzzword that has been flying around the Web 2.0 world is microblogging. It is just a short-form version of blogging with content that is shorter. Twitter is an example of microblogging, but it has one drawback: 140 character limit on entries. Twitter is a good service for spreading the word about traffic or construction, but this service allows for entries that are not limited to a specific number of characters. The one drawback of this blog is that it isn't accessible from mobile devices. Tumblr is, which is good for a website whose subject is roads and travel so this will be the mobile blogging platform for Pennsylvania Highways. It will provide a channel for field reporting.

http://pahighways.tumblr.com/

2009 Official Pennsylvania Map

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 21:32:00 -0400

This past weekend I stopped at the welcome center on I-70 at the Maryland state line in Warfordsburg and picked up a copy of the latest official state highway map. Here are the changes since 2007's edition:

Berks County/Chester County
PA 82 removed between Elverson and Birdsboro

Blair County/Centre County/State College Inset
I-99 completed from Bald Eagle to State College and indicated from there to I-80

Fayette County
PA Turnpike 43 completed between Exit 15 and Exit 22 and shown under construction between Exit 22 and PA 88

Lehigh County/Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Inset
US 222/Trexlertown Bypass completed from PA 100 to I-78

Tioga County
US 15 finished from PA 287 to New York and PA 287 extended along old US 15 to Lawrenceville

New Castle Inset
US 224 extended eastward on State Street and Falls Street

It has the same dimensions as the the previous years and this year's cover is of an Amish buggy driving on one of the newly designated Civil War Trails. You can see the cover on the Official State Highway Maps page and view the map at PennDOT's GIS page.

If the Departments of Transportation and Tourism would have waited, they could have given a shout out to our three professional sports teams that won championships in the past year much like NCDOT did on their 2007 cover for the Carolina Hurricanes.

Route 2.0 Meets Web 2.0

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 21:24:00 -0400

There is a lot of talk the days about the newest revolution on the Internet: Social Networking. It started with this blog which I use to write not just about the roads across the Commonwealth, but musings about Pennsylvania. However, other means of social networking have come along since blogs were all the rage. I began to think how these new tools could benefit Pennsylvania Highways. So today, the ninth anniversary of when I purchased the pahighways.com domain, I created a couple new avenues of communication.

Twitter
The new cultural buzz-word. Everyone seems to be Twittering, from Oprah to Senator John McCain. I've seen other Twitter pages such as CNN's and the Washington State Department of Transportation's and thought how it could work for my site. PennDOT and the PTC do have a system where people can receive text messages; however, it doesn't have the immediacy of a Twitter post. So using the WSDOT "template" I created an account that will be used for news items pertaining to the highway system from the respective agencies that oversee them.

http://twitter.com/pahighways

Facebook
Another phenomenon that seems to have come out of nowhere and taken the Internet by storm is Facebook. It seems that everyone from 9 to 90 has a Facebook page, even people's pets! So I figured why not create a Pennsylvania Highways presence on this platform as well. The page will be used to share news articles as well announcements of upcoming road enthusiast meets and other events.

http://www.facebook.com/pahighways

YouTube
No doubt you have spent time on this site, probably at work trying not to get caught by the boss while watching a clip of a skateboarding bulldog. YouTube is nothing new to the road enthusiast community as others have been taping their journeys and uploading them to this popular website. So now Pennsylvania Highways has entered the fray, but trying to find its niche will take a little longer than it took to get the page set up. One issue is that PennDOT has saved me the work by going ahead and videotaping all state routes. Another issue is that I need a newer videocamera than my family's circa 1991 Panasonic camcorder that is as big as a half loaf of bread, or just buy the A/V dongle from Hauppauge so I can record the video from it onto my computer's hard drive. Basically this idea is still on the burner.

http://www.youtube.com/pahighways

It's a Bouncing Baby Business Route

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 19:47:00 -0400

Congratulations Brownsville, you're the proud parents of the newest auxiliary route in Pennsylvania!

With the completion of the new alignment of US 40 east of the borough, PennDOT decided to sign the former route with the business moniker. The new designation keeps the US 40 shields on the former route from Redstone Way to PA 166 and returns them to the former alignment into Brownsville for the first time since 1970!

Make sure to send all gifts and cards to PennDOT District 12-0.

Business US 40 (Brownsville)
Application to Establish Business US 40 - AASHTO

Route Changes End Three Decades of Futility

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 22:51:00 -0500

It seems the route change that was expected, I-376 being extended, did not take place as expected. However, it did not mean that the Pennsylvania road map was left unchanged after the opening of Interstate 99.

In December, PennDOT decided to truncate PA 82 at PA 23 in Elverson and renumber the remainder of the route in Chester County SR 4082. In Berks County, the route became SR 2082 north to Birdsboro and the PA 345 designation was extended to replace PA 82 to its northern terminus at US 422.

When Hurricane Agnes decimated Pennsylvania in 1972, it destroyed several bridges that carried PA 82 across Hay Creek south of Birdsboro. The Department of Transportation wanted to rebuild them but local opposition was strong as the residents who lived nearby became accustomed to the lack of traffic and wanted to keep it that way. PA 345 was signed that year as a detour route to bypass the missing section.

Route 82 Change - Exeter Township

Interstate 99 FINALLY Opens on Skytop

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:22:00 -0500

Those who live along and those who have had to travel the narrow and dangerous US 220 in the Bald Eagle Valley have another reason to be thankful this Thanksgiving. As of 3 PM today, the Bud Shuster Highway is finally open to both northbound and southbound traffic across Bald Eagle Mountain.

PennDOT had previously opened both directions from Bald Eagle to Port Matilda in December 2007, but from there north it was only open northbound due to continuing clean-up of the pyritic rock that was unearthed during construction. Southbound traffic was still using the old alignment. So it is now official: PennDOT has slain the acid rock dragon.

The new highway is signed as Interstate 99. However, since it is only one of two Interstates to have its designation signed into law, legislation has to be passed to amend the definition of the route. It has not as of yet, so it is illegally designated as such but then again some people would already say it is due to being west of Interstate 81.

I-99 Open to All Traffic - Centre Daily Times

Route 30: The Movie

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 22:15:00 -0400

The sections I drive could be classified as horror, but comedy is the genre of John Putch's independent movie Route 30. The Chambersburg native filmed the movie along the highway last October with such stars as Dana Delany of Desperate Housewives and Curtis Armstrong best known to audiences as Herbert Viola on Moonlighting. Fellow Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor board member Ed Gotwalt, owner of Mister Ed's Elephant Museum, also has a part.

The premier of the movie will be at the Majestic Theatre in Gettysburg on September 27, 2008 at 8 PM with a cast and crew Q&A to follow. Tickets to the screening are $16 per person and a portion of the proceeds benefit the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor and Totem Pole Playhouse non-profit organizations. You can purchase tickets at the Totem Pole Playhouse, Mister Ed's Elephant Museum, Majestic Theatre, or online.

2007 Official Pennsylvania Map

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Sat, 11 Aug 2007 00:27:00 -0400

Last month I received a copy of the latest official state highway map from the Map Sales office just before the state shut down over not being able to pass a budget. Here are the changes since 2006's edition:

Allegheny County/Washington County/Pittsburgh Inset
PA Turnpike 576 completed between US 22 and PA 60

Berks County
US 222 shown as completed now with the red expressway stripe between PA 272 and Shillington

Fayette County
PA Turnpike 43 indicated under construction north of US 40 from US 119 to Brier Hill

Tioga County
US 15 indicated as under construction from PA 287 to the New York state line

Altoona Inset
Osgood Drive completed on the eastern side of I-99/US 220 between Exit 32 and Exit 33

New Castle Inset
PA 65 removed between PA 108/PA 168 and Business US 422

It has the same dimensions as the the previous years and this year's cover is from America's Most Livable City, with a man creating a mural in chalk on the West End overlook. You can see the cover on the Official State Highway Maps page and view the map at PennDOT's GIS page.

Pittsburgh is Number One! Again!

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Wed, 02 May 2007 21:58:00 -0400

It has been 22 years since the last time Pittsburgh was named the “Most Livable City” by the “Places Rated Almanac.”

Let me put that in some perspective. The last time it was given this designation, a Republican was in the White House, people were talking about competing video formats and wondering which to buy, and MTV played music videos. Well, as Meatloaf said, “two out of three ain’t bad.” Let’s put it another way, the last time Pittsburgh was number one, the mayor was five!

The ranking was devised through several categories: housing affordability (cost of living), transportation, jobs, education, climate, crime, health care, recreation, and ambiance (museums, performing arts, restaurants and historical districts).

I can see housing costs, after all it was only in the past few years that housing crested the $100K mark. Education since there are about 20-30 colleges and universities within a 50 mile radius of the city, crime is relatively low for the size of the city, health care with UPMC and other hospitals in Oakland, recreation with it sitting right next to the Laurel Highlands and the rivers, and ambiance which will increase once Mellon Arena 2 or whatever it’s called, opens will add to that ranking. However, the others I can’t understand. Transportation is limping along especially with the Port Authority hemorrhaging money and job creation is lackluster with the exception of Google that opened at Carnegie Mellon University. Then there is the climate of which we were in the deep freeze for most of April, but basking in 60-degree temperatures in December.

For all the pros and cons it has, Pittsburgh is a decent city. It’s not too big and it’s not too small, like Baby Bear’s bed in “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.”

Pittsburgh Rated "Most Livable" Once Again - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Get Your Kicks on Route 76...276...476

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 22:54:00 -0500

Due to the snow/ice storm that hit the Commonwealth, numerous vehicles were stranded along I-78, I-80, and I-81. PennDOT has closed down sections of those Interstates to clear the vehicles as well as snow. They are asking cross-state traffic to use the Turnpike's mainline and Northeast Extension as alternate routes. For the first time since the first day of the collector strike in 2004, tolls are being waived on those sections of the Turnpike System.

Toll Waiving - Disaster Emergency - PTC

New Year, New URL

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 01:13:00 -0500

The new year has brought a new URL for the Pennsylvania Highways Blog: http://www.pahighways.com/blog/.

I never liked the "cblog" directory because it did not make any sense, and it did not look right in an address bar. However, that is what my provider had set it to default to during installation. So I decided to tinker with the settings a little and see if I could change them to what I would like to see. Viola! No more cblog folder!

2006 Official Pennsylvania Map

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Fri, 25 Aug 2006 18:18:00 -0400

I received in the mail a copy of the newest official state highway map. Here are the changes since the 2005 edition:

Erie County/Erie Inset
PA 290 now shown on the Bayfront Connector and East 12th Street

Jefferson County
PA 949 extended south from Corsica to Summerville

Lehigh County/Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Inset
PA 100 now signed on the Trexlertown Bypass

Mifflin County
Northern Lewistown Bypass completed and Business US 22 signed through the borough

Tioga County
US 15 under construction from PA 287 to the New York state line

Seems that practically every state agency has some advertisement on the back of the map now. I am surprised our new Gaming Commission doesn't have an ad to get you ready to drop some money at our casinos...whenever we get them. I guess it will come in a future edition. A picture of the cover is now on the Official State Highway Maps page.

The Man Who Saved PennDOT Passes Away

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Sun, 30 Jul 2006 21:56:00 -0400

He was more at home in the hallways of Penn State than on the highways of Pennsylvania, but Dr. Thomas D. Larson taught the government a lesson. In 1979, the professor was tapped by then Governor Thornburgh to fix the crumbling roadways and agency behind them. After his service to the Commonwealth, he moved onto the Federal level to head the Federal Highway Administration where he shaped the first Surface Transportation Efficiency Act. He passed away on July 20 at the age of 77.

We at Pennsylvania Highways offer our sympathies to his family.

Getting Around: Tom Larson Led PennDOT Out of Politics, Potholes - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Chairman of the Board

nospam@example.com (Webmaster) — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 22:35:00 -0400

I have had an interest in roads for as long as I can remember. Having grown up near US 30 and traveling on it to visit family, it and the Lincoln Highway hold a special place.

When the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor began, I was one of the first members. Originally a "Friend" then became a "Friend for Life." I adopted my first a Lincoln Highway sign in 2001, and three years later became to first to have adopted one in each of the LHHC counties.

In recent years, the LHHC has expanded into fundraising ventures such as offering ballroom dancing classes. The one I offered to drive my parents to, in order to get a free meal afterwards and and take pictures during, had an LHHC representative that I have known since I was little. He and my father worked together years ago, and known each other since. When I came to pick up my parents, I ran into him and we began talking. I mentioned the website and my involvement with the LHHC.

In April he contacted me about joining the Board of Directors. I jumped at the chance and said I would be honored. It wasn't made official until July 13 when I met with him and Olga Herbert, Director of the LHHC, and the offer officially made. This evening was the first board meeting I attended, which took place in Everett.

Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor