PENNSYLVANIA ROUTE 309

'Pennsylvania Route 309' is a major highway which runs for 134 miles (216 km) through Pennsylvania, in the United States that connects Philadelphia and its northern suburbs to Allentown, Hazleton, and Wilkes-Barre.
The highway runs from northern Philadelphia through the Lehigh Valley, the Poconos, and Wilkes-Barre to Bowman Creek, a village in Noxen Township, Wyoming County. It parallels the newer Interstates 476 and 81 for much of its length.

Contents

Route description

Philadelphia to Allentown

Allentown to the Wyoming Valley

The Wyoming Valley to Bowman Creek

Major intersections

Philadelphia to Wilkes-Barre

Wilkes-Barre to Luzerne

Luzerne to terminus

History

References

External links

Route description

Philadelphia to Allentown

PA 309 begins in the East Oak Lane section of Philadelphia at Broad Street (Pennsylvania Route 611). It follows Cheltenham Avenue and Ogontz Avenue for a short distance north to become the 'Fort Washington Expressway', a freeway that forms a major commuter route through the northern suburbs of Philadelphia, passing north through the towns of Fort Washington and Ambler, interchanging with the mainline of the Pennsylvania Turnpike near the former. At Montgomeryville, the route becomes 'Bethlehem Pike', a four-lane highway through Montgomeryville, Quakertown, and Coopersburg, with alternating arterial road and freeway segments notorious for large sections of suburban sprawl. North of Coopersburg, the freeway briefly merges with Interstate 78 to bypass Allentown.

Allentown to the Wyoming Valley

Communities
★ Wilkes-Barre ★ Hazleton ★ McAdoo ★ Tamaqua ★ Allentown ★ Coopersburg ★ Quakertown ★ Montgomeryville ★ Fort Washington ★ Philadelphia

The PA 309 freeway bypasses Allentown to the west, interchanging with U.S. Route 22 and Interstate 476 before emptying onto a two-lane road north of Allentown. It continues north through the Lehigh Valley suburbs of Orefield, Schnecksville, and New Tripoli then turns northwest, crossing Blue Mountain and the Appalachian Trail on the way to Tamaqua. It then parallels Interstate 81 northward, running through downtown Hazleton and meeting with Interstate 80 north of the city. North of I-80, the route climbs Penobscot Mountain to the town of Mountain Top, then descends into the Wyoming Valley and merges with Interstate 81.

The Wyoming Valley to Bowman Creek

After running concurrently with Interstate 81 for several miles, PA 309 exits onto the 'Cross Valley Expressway', a freeway through downtown Wilkes-Barre and across the Susquehanna River to Trucksville. The route then continues northward as an arterial through Shavertown and Dallas, to its end at Pennsylvania Route 29 at Bowman Creek, south of Tunkhannock.

Major intersections

Philadelphia to Wilkes-Barre

Carbon
'No junctions'

Wilkes-Barre to Luzerne

County	Location	Mile	#	Destinations	Notes
Luzerne	Wilkes-Barre	117.1	1	PA 315
			2	North Wilkes-Barre Boulevard/North Washington Street
			3	South River Street
	Kingston		4	Rutter Avenue	Northbound exit and southbound entrance only[2]
		120.2	5	US 11 (Wyoming Avenue)	Southbound exit and northbound entrance only2
	Pringle		6	Union Street	Northbound exit and southbound entrance only[3]
	Luzerne			Main Street	Southbound exit and northbound entrance only3

Luzerne to terminus

History

Starting out as a Native American path now referred to as the "Minsi Trail", this route became part of the Bethlehem Pike. In 1926, all of modern-day PA 309, as well as a small section of Pennsylvania Route 29 from Bowman Creek to Tunkhannock, was designated 'U.S. Route 309'. In 1968, US 309 was decommissioned and was replaced by PA 29 north of Bowman Creek and PA 309 south of Bowman Creek.

References

1. Pennsylvania Highways - Pennsylvania Route 309
2. US 11 and Rutter Avenue interchanges
3. Exit 6

External links

★ PennDOT's 309Online Official Web Site, with construction updates.

★ History of U.S. Route 309

★ 24/7 Live Cam of Route 309 in Mountain Top, PA