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Routing
Connecting the Pennsylvania Turnpike (Interstate 70-76) Bedford with U.S. 220 at Bald Eagle, Interstate 99 is another growing Interstate corridor. Also known as the Appalachian Thruway and the Bud Shuster Byway, it is the first Interstate highway to have its designation written into law (National Highway Designation Act of 1995). Several other Interstates (including Interstate 66 in Kentucky and Interstate 86 in New York have since had their designations written into law.) Ultimately, Interstate 99 will connect the Turnpike with Interstate 80 via State College, and a new segment will extend Interstate 99 north into New York via U.S. 15, connecting with Interstate 86.
Located east of Interstate 79 and west of Interstate 81, Interstate 99 is the bane of many road enthusiasts who treasure an orderly and sequential numbering system for Interstate highways. The numbering of this highway was determined by Congressman Bud Shuster. He was responsible for writing Interstate 99's designation into the 1995 National Highway Designation Act. The number "99" violates the standard numbering convention associated with Interstate highways (according to numbering guidelines, Interstate 99 should be hugging the Atlantic coast, not the small Pennsylvania cities of Altoona and State College.) Under the orderly system, the lowest numbers are on the West Coast and the highest numbers are on the East Coast. While central Pennsylvania is pretty far east, it is still hundreds of miles from the Atlantic Ocean. Several north-south routes, including Interstates 81, 83, 87, 89, 91, 93, 95, and 97 all lie east of Interstate 99. In addition, a long-considered Interstate from Interstate 95 near Wilmington, Delaware, south to Norfolk, Virginia, would have to take the "101" designation since "99" was taken by the Appalachian Thruway.
High Priority Corridor
Proposed Interstate 99 in central Pennsylvania is part of High Priority Corridor 9: Appalachian Thruway Corridor. Its designation is written into law.
Future Aspirations
The Interstate 99 designation was approved by Congress as part of the National Highway System Designation Act (signed into law by President Clinton on November 28, 1995). Three years later, a portion of Interstate 99 was approved by AASHTO's Route Numbering Subcommittee on November 6, 1998, between Bedford and Bald Eagle. The section north of Bald Eagle, which was largely unconstructed at that time, was not submitted to AASHTO for approval at that time.
The original section of Interstate 99 between the Pennsylvania Turnpike (Interstate 70/76 at Bedford) and Bald Eagle along the U.S. 220 freeway was first signed in 1995. A new section of Future Interstate 99 opened on November 25, 2002, between State College and Interstate 80 (signed as U.S. 220), followed by the section between Bald Eagle and Port Matilda / Skytop, slated to open between December 12-19, 2007.2 The section between Skytop and State College remains under construction, and once this middle section is finished, Interstate 99 will be signed between Bedford and Interstate 80.
Completion of the route west of State College, known as the "Skytop" section, is hampered with delays due to environmental concerns associated with acid rock, sandstone laced with pyrite. Clean-up of the pyrite-laced sandstone, which when exposed to air and water creates sulfuric acid, delayed the opening of Interstate 99 west of State College from an anticipated Summer 2006 completion.1
The rest of planned Interstate 99 is a future route with signs proclaiming its extension along U.S. 220 to Lock Haven and Williamsport, then northbound along U.S. 15 toward newly commissioned Interstate 86 near Corning, New York. It is possible that Interstate 99 could continue north all the way to Rochester via Interstate 390. Although some discussions have considered the possibility of Interstate 83 continuing north to Rochester, it does not appear that will occur due to the large gap of Interstate-standard freeway between Harrisburg and U.S. 15.
A freeway is under construction from Tioga northward to the New York state line in anticipation of the U.S. 15 upgrade to Interstate 99. Work on the six-mile project is slated for completion by Labor Day 2008. Further north, work involving the upgrade of the U.S. 15 and Interstate 86 interchange should be completed by July of 2008. Formerly a diamond interchange, the freeway junction now includes high-speed flyovers to accompany an overall upgrade of the U.S. 15 freeway leading south from Painted Post.
The southern terminus of Interstate 99 in Bedford is also likely to change, as the highway is part of the Appalachian Thruway/High Priority Corridor 9. Improvements are planned for U.S. 220 south to Cumberland, and expansion to Interstate standards may occur at some point.
Parallel U.S. Routes
The existing section of Interstate 99 overlaps with U.S. 220 for its entirety, and it will continue
along U.S. 220 until reaching U.S. 15 in north-central Pennsylvania and New York. It is not clear if
Interstate 99 would supplement or replace U.S. 15.
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