In preparation for a major winter storm event, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) are advising motorists to avoid all unnecessary travel during the storm, and are anticipating that restrictions on trucks and other vehicles will be imposed on certain roadways around the state.
“We have been preparing for winter since the last one ended, and we’re calling on the public to be our partners in safe travel,” PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian in a press release. “Please, avoid traveling and if you must travel, be sure to check travel conditions and give plow operators plenty of space so they can do their jobs safely and effectively.”
PA Turnpike CEO Mark Compton added that “if you must travel, before heading out, be sure to download the 511PA Smartphone App for real-time, hands-free PA traffic advisories. Speed restrictions and vehicle bans will be used extensively during this storm and you will want to be fully apprised of any changes.”
Effective 1 pm. Wednesday, PennDOT and PTC anticipate vehicle restrictions will begin to be phased in reflecting Level 1 of the commonwealth’s weather event vehicle restriction plan on the following roadways, according to the release:
- All northbound and southbound miles of Route 33;
- Interstate 76 (Schuylkill Expressway) from the Pennsylvania Turnpike to Interstate 95;
- All eastbound and westbound miles of Interstate 78;
- Interstate 80 from Interstate 99 to the New Jersey border;
- All northbound and southbound miles of Interstate 81;
- All northbound and southbound miles of Interstate 83;
- All eastbound and westbound miles of Interstate 84;
- Interstate 95 from the Delaware border to the New Jersey border;
- All eastbound and westbound miles of Interstate 283;
- All northbound and southbound miles of Interstate 380;
- Interstate 476 from the Pennsylvania Turnpike to Interstate 95;
- All eastbound and westbound miles of Interstate 676;
- All northbound and southbound miles of Interstate 295;
- All eastbound and westbound miles on the Pennsylvania Turnpike from the Breezewood interchange to the New Jersey border; and
- All northbound and southbound miles on the Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension (Interstate 476) from Interstate 76 to the Clark Summit interchange.