Interstate 80 (I-80) in the US state of Pennsylvania runs for across the northern part of the state. It is designated as the Keystone Shortway and officially as the Z.H. Confair Memorial Highway. This route was built mainly along a completely new alignment, not paralleling any earlier US Routes, as a shortcut to the tolled Pennsylvania Turnpike to the south and New York State Thruway to the north. It does not serve any major cities in Pennsylvania and is mainly a cross-state route on the Ohio–New York City corridor. Most of I-80's path across the state goes through hilly and mountainous terrain, while the route passes through relatively flat areas toward the western part of the state.
I-80 serves many smaller cities in central to northern Pennsylvania including Sharon, Clarion, DuBois, Bellefonte, Lock Haven, Milton, Bloomsburg, Hazleton, and Stroudsburg. It also passes close but never into four slightly larger cities: Williamsport, State College, Scranton, and Wilkes-Barre.
Route description
Western Pennsylvania
From the state of Ohio, I-80 enters the Western Pennsylvania area which encompasses Mercer, Venango, Butler, Clarion, Jefferson, and Clearfield counties. This segment crosses the Allegheny Plateau. In Mercer County, I-80 intersects I-376 (serving Pittsburgh International Airport and Downtown Pittsburgh) in Shenango Township and I-79 (serving Erie to the north and Pittsburgh to the south) in Findley Township. I-80 spends less than in Butler County, and has no exits in it. It crosses the Allegheny River on the Emlenton Bridge near Emlenton.
Jefferson County at milemarker 73 is known for the city of Punxsutawney, the location of the famous groundhog Punxsutawney Phil who predicts the weather on Groundhog Day. In Clearfield County, I-80 passes by the city of DuBois at milemarker 101, and crosses the Eastern Continental Divide at a shallow ridge just east of that city.
East of exit 111, in Moshannon State Forest, I-80 reaches its highest elevation east of the Mississippi River, . A sign prominently displays this fact about the Interstate. It then descends to cross the West Branch Susquehanna River.
North-Central Pennsylvania
I-80 enters Centre County around milemarker 138. I-80 descends Allegheny Mountain into the Nittany Valley, intersecting Future I-99/U.S. Route 220 (US 220) at exit 161, the main connecting point to the Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-70/I-76), Pennsylvania State University, and State College. US 220 is concurrent between exits 161 and 178 where it heads toward Lock Haven, home to Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania.
I-80 then ascends Sugar Valley Mountain and then follows White Deer Creek down to the West Branch Susquehanna River, which I-80 crosses a second time. Around milemarker 191, Pennsylvania Route 880 (PA 880) follows a parallel alignment within the median between the eastbound and westbound lanes for a half-mile (), an unusual arrangement in Pennsylvania. It is common to see horse-drawn carriages from the nearby Amish communities traveling this highway-within-a-highway.
At milemarker 199, I-80 approaches the Williamsport area in Lycoming County, where the venue of the Little League World Series is located, while passing through Union County. I-80 intersects US 15 at exit 210.
Northeastern Pennsylvania
I-80 enters the Northeastern Pennsylvania area to include points Northumberland County and east to New Jersey. I-80 intersects I-180 and PA 147 at exit 212. In Montour County at milemarker 224, it approaches the Bloomsburg area, home to Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, where it crosses the North Branch Susquehanna River. At exit 260, a connection can be made via I-81 to Harrisburg to the south and Wilkes-Barre and Syracuse, New York, to the north.
The highway continues east into the Pocono Mountains region, which is home to ski resort areas. I-80 intersects I-476 (Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension) at exit 277 in Carbon County for connections to Allentown and Philadelphia to the south. Exit 277 also serves PA 940 and Hickory Run State Park. Just east of I-476, I-80 crosses into Monroe County. Exit 284 connects to PA 115 near Blakeslee and Lake Harmony. Exit 293 is an interchange with I-380 near Pocono Pines for a connection to I-84 to New England and Scranton toward the north. Between exits 293 and 298, there is a rest area on the eastbound side with public restrooms and picnic tables but no food or gas.