29-661: The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) is responsible for the establishment and classification of a state highway network which includes Interstate Highways , U.S. Highways , and state routes . U.S. and Interstate highways are classified as state routes in Pennsylvania . The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania established the Location Referencing System (LRS) in 1987, which registers all numbered routes in Pennsylvania as SR-X. A state route would be SR 39,
58-401: A DMV office in other states, are handled by a network of private businesses called "messenger services", which contract with the department. They operate by charging service fees on top of the fees that PennDOT charges. Some messenger services also have a limited ability to perform driver's license services, such as changing a driver's license address or renewing a driver's license, but not taking
87-544: A US Route would be SR 22, and an Interstate route would be SR 80. However, routes which are numbered between 0000 and 0999 are classified as Traffic Routes, which are abbreviated as PA 39, US 22, and I-80, instead. There are also four-digit numbers for various "state roads" over which PennDOT has jurisdiction, but those numbers are not displayed on the roads, except in rural areas, where they are posted with index-card-sized small signs. In urban areas, these numbers are somewhat less prominently posted, and these streets are known by
116-574: A great deal. PennDOT is organized into five deputates which oversee various transportation functions. The Highway Administration deputate oversees 39,737 miles (63,951 km) of roadway and 25,400 bridges in Pennsylvania which comprise the Pennsylvania State Route System . The deputate is made up of over 9,300 employees in design, construction, maintenance, materials testing, environmental review, safety, and traffic engineering. There are eleven engineering districts located throughout
145-564: A mass decommissioning of highways around the state occurred, and many state routes were decommissioned, truncated, or rerouted. The establishment of the Interstate Highway System in 1959, as well as wanting to eliminate some concurrences in Pittsburgh , resulted in a small renumbering in 1961. Since Pennsylvania first introduced numbered traffic routes in 1924, a keystone symbol shape has been used, in reference to Pennsylvania being
174-552: A program to quadruple state funding for bridge repairs. Across the United States, 61,000 bridges are deemed "structurally deficient", which means they need repairs, contain a piece rated as "poor," and might also have a weight limit. The term structurally deficient does not mean a bridge is unsafe for travel. In Pennsylvania, eight of the top ten most traveled structurally deficient bridges are in Philadelphia. Pennsylvania has
203-417: A replacement for a lost drivers license. In addition to this, the department also operates "Photo License Centers" which solely take photographs for drivers licenses. There are 75 Drivers and Photo License Centers and 26 Photo License Centers operated by PennDOT. Transactions relating to motor vehicles, such as vehicle title transfers or replacing a lost registration plate , which would typically be handled by
232-407: Is also in charge of Pennsylvania Welcome Centers located along major highways entering the state. According to a 2011 study by Transportation for America , 26.5% of Pennsylvania's bridges were structurally deficient and the state led the United States with six metropolitan areas with a high percentage of deficient bridges. These figures would have been higher, but the state had recently undertaken
261-579: Is also in charge of the cash flow from the federal and state governments to fund improvement projects along with working on long-range research and map making. The Multimodal Transportation deputate oversees aviation , rail freight transport , public transportation , ports , and pedestrian and bicycle transportation. The deputate oversees airports in Pennsylvania , which includes 127 public airports, 243 private airports, and 280 private heliports. Multimodal Transportation also looks over 65 railroads which operate over 5,600 miles (9,000 km) of track in
290-2003: Is divided into engineering districts to localize engineering and maintenance. The following is a table of the districts and their associated headquarters. The statewide headquarters for PennDOT is located in the Commonwealth Keystone Building in Harrisburg . Erie County Forest County Mercer County Venango County Warren County Centre County Clearfield County Clinton County Elk County Juniata County McKean County Mifflin County Potter County Lycoming County Montour County Northumberland County Snyder County Sullivan County Tioga County Union County Lehigh County Monroe County Northampton County Schuylkill County Delaware County Montgomery County City and County of Philadelphia Dauphin County Franklin County Lancaster County Lebanon County Perry County York County Blair County Cambria County Fulton County Huntingdon County Somerset County Butler County Clarion County Indiana County Jefferson County Beaver County Lawrence County Greene County Washington County Westmoreland County PennDOT has received criticism over
319-471: Is supported by motor vehicle fuel taxes, which are dedicated solely to transportation-related state expenditures. In recent years, PennDOT has focused on intermodal transportation , which is an attempt to enhance commerce and public transportation. PennDOT employs approximately 11,000 people. PennDOT has extensive traffic cameras set up throughout the state's major cities, including Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown , Erie, Wilkes-Barre , Scranton , and
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#1732851932136348-551: The 118th District from 2007 to 2023. Carroll was born in Avoca, Pennsylvania . He graduated from Pittston Area High School in 1980 and received a Bachelor of Arts in liberal studies from the University of Scranton . Prior to elective office, he worked as district office director for Congressman Paul Kanjorski , as liaison for transportation issues for Governor Bob Casey , and as chief of staff for Representative John Yudichak . He
377-486: The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission logo); additionally, the numbers were made more round and the signs were made larger in order to be more legible while driving, and the keystone shape itself remained a cutout. By the late 1960s, as U.S. Routes were beginning to be made on rectangular cutouts with the U.S.-style shield painted onto them instead of the shield cutout in most states outside of California ,
406-482: The "Keystone State". The signs originally said "Penna" (a common abbreviation for Pennsylvania at the time), followed by the route number in block-style numbering in a keystone cutout. In the mid 1950s, the signs were modified to have "PA" instead of "Penna", with the lone exception being the mainline Pennsylvania Turnpike (which continues to use "Penna" today for both the mainline, the Northeast Extension , and
435-540: The Commonwealth. Greatest growth in the state highway system occurred in 1931 when 20,156 miles (32,438 km) of rural roads were taken over by the Commonwealth. At that time, the Department of Highways, at the direction of Governor Gifford Pinchot , embarked upon an extensive program of paving rural roadways, well known as the "get the farmer out of the mud" program. The Federal Government in 1916 instituted grants to
464-619: The associated photo. An exception to this method of operation is at the PennDOT headquarters in Harrisburg , which has a large room for all motor vehicle transactions and drivers' license transactions, with a separate room for photographing and issuing licenses to motorists. The Planning deputate develops the Twelve Year Transportation Program in collaboration with the federal government and local planning organizations, which guides improvements to transportation in Pennsylvania. It
493-506: The exception of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission . Other modes of transportation supervised or supported by PennDOT include aviation , rail traffic , mass transit , intrastate highway shipping traffic, motor vehicle safety and licensing, and driver licensing . PennDOT supports the Ports of Philadelphia , Pittsburgh , and Erie . The department's current budget is approximately $ 3.8 billion in federal and state funds. The state budget
522-558: The highest number of structurally deficient bridges in the U.S. Overall, the state has 25,000 bridges excluding privately owned bridges, which is the third-largest number of bridges in the U.S. Pennsylvania has launched a program called the Rapid Bridge Replacement project to increase the number of bridges it fixes. The project is a public-private partnership between PennDOT and the private firm Plenary Walsh Keystone Partners. The project fixed almost 700 bridges in 2014. PennDOT
551-752: The legislature on May 6, 1970. The intent of the legislation was to consolidate transportation-related functions formerly performed in the Departments of Commerce, Revenue, Community Affairs, Forests and Waters, Military Affairs and other state agencies. PennDOT is responsible for constructing and maintaining a system of roads at the sole expense of the state. It controls more than 41,000 miles (66,000 km) of roadway. Townships control approximately 51,376 miles (82,682 km) of roads and streets; boroughs, 9,460 miles (15,220 km) and cities 6,779 miles (10,910 km). In all, there are more than 118,226 miles (190,266 km) of public roads, streets and toll roads in
580-865: The names on the street signs. In 1911, when the Sproul Road Bill was passed, a large number of Legislative Routes ( LR ) were assigned. These were the primary internal numbering until the present Location Referencing System was adopted in 1987. See also List of legislative routes in Pennsylvania . Signed Traffic Route numbers from 1 to 12 were first assigned in 1924 to several of the national auto trails : Italics denote former routes. Soon more numbers were assigned, including three-digit numbers for branches, like Pennsylvania Route 272 from Pennsylvania Route 72 . The United States Numbered Highways were assigned in late 1926, and in 1928 State Routes concurrent with U.S. Routes were removed, while those that conflicted with U.S. Routes were assigned new numbers. In 1946,
609-580: The painted-on keystone signs since. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation ( PennDOT ) oversees transportation issues in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania . The administrator of PennDOT is the Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation, Michael B. Carroll . PennDOT supports nearly 40,000 miles (64,000 km) of state roads and highways, about 25,000 bridges, and new roadway construction with
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#1732851932136638-464: The same was done with the keystone. The state initials were removed altogether and while the numbers remained rounded, were standardized into FHWA Series E typeface , which was becoming the standard for the Interstate Highway System . Most of the 1950s vintage signs were replaced with the newer rectangular cutout with the painted-on keystone by the early 1970s, though a very few remain in scattered places on non- decommissioned roads. Pennsylvania has used
667-401: The state capital of Harrisburg , In Wilkes-Barre, cameras are fed through to a television channel for Service Electric cable customers in the city and its suburbs. Unlike speed cameras , these cameras are primarily installed for ITS purposes, and not for law enforcement. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation was created from the former Department of Highways by Act 120, approved by
696-537: The state. PennDOT is responsible for motor vehicle titles and registration, along with issuing driver licenses through the Driver & Vehicle Services deputate. Somewhat uniquely, PennDOT does not operate typical DMV offices, such as those that exist in other states. Rather, they operate "Driver and Photo License Centers", for full service regarding drivers licenses. This includes activities like taking driver's tests, getting driver's license photographs taken, or requesting
725-410: The state. The administration deputate is charged with managing various bureaus that overee fiscal management, computer systems, mobile applications, telecommunications, contract compliance, training, employee safety, human resources, office services, facilities management, quality improvements, partnerships with other government agencies and communities, and employees engagement activities. The deputate
754-988: The state. PennDOT oversees bicycle routes across the state, including the state-designated BicyclePA bicycle routes and the portions of the federally-designated United States Bicycle Route System located within Pennsylvania. PennDOT provides the primary funding for two Amtrak trains in Pennsylvania that operate along the Keystone Corridor . The Keystone Service runs between Harrisburg and New York City via Philadelphia and offers multiple daily departures. The Pennsylvanian runs between Pittsburgh and New York City via Philadelphia and operates once daily in each direction. The Mulitmodal Transportation deputate supports public transit authorities in Pennsylvania , which consists of 34 agencies providing fixed-route and demand responsive transport to urban and rural areas and 18 agencies providing demand responsive transport only. The deputate also supports intercity bus service in
783-495: The states for highway construction. These grants continue today and now comprise the key element in determining the size of the state's roadbuilding programs. State payments to local communities for road maintenance also have continued to expand so that they average approximately $ 170 million annually. The agency went into well-noted organizational decline. An effort to bring quality management principles to PennDOT over an extended period—four changes of state governor—accomplished
812-607: The years regarding the quality of the roads in the Commonwealth, as Pennsylvania has previously ranked among the worst maintained road systems in the United States . Michael B. Carroll Michael B. Carroll (born 1962) is an American politician who serves as the Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation since 2023. A Democrat , he previously served as a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for
841-524: Was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in November 2006 and assumed office on January 2, 2007. He did not seek re-election in 2022. On January 12, 2023, Governor -elect Josh Shapiro nominated Carroll to serve as Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation . He was confirmed by the Pennsylvania State Senate on May 3. In June 2023, Carroll "practically lived out of a trailer on
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