Pennsylvania Route 61 (PA 61) is an state highway that is located in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the United States. The route is signed on a north–south direction, running from U.S. Route 222 Business (US 222 Bus.) in Reading northwest to US 11/US 15/PA 147 in Shamokin Dam.
PA 61 heads north from Reading through Berks County to Hamburg, where it meets Interstate 78 (I-78)/US 22. The route continues into the Coal Region in Schuylkill County and heads through Schuylkill Haven, Pottsville, Frackville (where it has an interchange with I-81), and Ashland.
PA 61 passes through the southern part of Columbia County, where it turns west in Centralia, before it heads into Northumberland County and runs west through Mount Carmel, Kulpmont, Shamokin, and Sunbury. The route crosses the Susquehanna River into Snyder County and soon reaches its northern terminus.
PA 61 roughly follows the alignment of the Centre Turnpike, a turnpike from Reading to Sunbury that was completed in 1814. The road between Reading and Sunbury became part of US 120 when the U.S. Highway System was created in 1926. In 1935, this section of road became part of US 122, a route than ran from US 1 in Oxford north to US 11/US 111 in Northumberland.
US 122 saw multiple upgrades and realignments in the following years. In 1963, US 122 was decommissioned and PA 61 was designated onto the former alignment of US 122 between US 222 (now US 222 Bus.) in Reading and PA 147 in Sunbury. Upgrades and realignments continued to be made to PA 61. In 1990, the route was extended north from Sunbury to US 11/US 15 in Shamokin Dam. A section of PA 61 south of Centralia was closed in 1993 after the Centralia mine fire damaged the road and made it unsafe to travel on; this section was bypassed with a realignment to a parallel road through Byrnesville. The closed section of PA 61 was used by pedestrians and bicyclists and was covered with graffiti before being blocked to public access and covered with dirt in 2020.
Route description
Berks County
PA 61 begins at US 222 Bus. in the city of Reading in Berks County, and heads west on two-lane undivided Greenwich Street, a road that is maintained by the city. This road intersects Centre Avenue and North 4th Street a short distance apart, at which points the route briefly splits into the one-way pair of Centre Avenue northbound and North 4th Street southbound and becomes state-maintained. At the intersection of North 4th Street and Centre Avenue, both directions of PA 61 continue northwest on two-lane undivided Centre Avenue, passing through urban areas of homes.
The road becomes three lanes with one northbound lane and two southbound lanes and curves north, running between residences and businesses to the west and a large cemetery to the east. The route narrows to two lanes and continues past urban development. PA 61 heads into commercial areas and widens to four lanes, crossing Norfolk Southern's Spruce Street Industrial Track at-grade before passing to the east of FirstEnergy Stadium, the home ballpark of Minor League Baseball's Reading Fightin Phils. The road heads into Muhlenberg Township and becomes a divided highway as it reaches a partial cloverleaf interchange with the PA 12 freeway (Warren Street Bypass).
Past this interchange, the route continues north into suburban areas as Pottsville Pike, a four-lane divided highway with some intersections controlled by jughandles. PA 61 heads past businesses and passes under Norfolk Southern's Reading Line. The road becomes undivided and runs through more commercial areas. The route briefly becomes a divided highway again at the Bellevue Avenue intersection, heading to the west of the Reading Outer Station along the Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad.
The highway transitions to a three-lane road with a center left-turn lane and passes under the Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad's Reading Division line. PA 61 runs past businesses and industrial development before it heads through the community of Tuckerton, where it passes homes and businesses.
The road becomes a four-lane divided highway as it comes to a partial cloverleaf interchange with the US 222 freeway. Following this, the route enters Ontelaunee Township and runs along the east bank of the Schuylkill River as it passes through the community of Ontelaunee. PA 61 heads farther from the river and crosses under a Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad line, entering industrial areas and passing west of the Ontelaunee Energy Facility. The road heads near more commercial development and curves northwest, crossing Maiden Creek. The route runs through farmland and comes to an intersection with the western terminus of PA 73.