PA Turnpike Speed Limit To Increase

The speed limit on the the Pennsylvania Turnpike will soon increase from 65 mph to 70 mph, the Turnpike Commission confirmed Wednesday.

The move to increase the speed limit on the highway comes after a pilot project that began in 2014. That pilot project increased the speed limit to 70 miles an hour on 100 miles of roadway between the Blue Mountain and Morgantown interchanges in south-central Pennsylvania.

The Turnpike Commission has been working closely with PennDOT to analyze crash and speed data on that stretch of the highway, explained Turnpike Commission spokesman Carl DeFebo Jr.

"Analysis revealed that there has been no significant increase in the average speed at which vehicles are traveling on the Turnpike in that 100-mile stretch," DeFebo said.

There was also no statistical changes in accident rates along those 100 miles. "In fact rates decreased in some parts of the study area -- even as traffic numbers increased," DeFebo explained.

The Turnpike Commisson and PennDOT will be announcing a specific 70 mph implementation date later this spring.

According to DeFebo:

• All sections of the PA Turnpike system that are presently posted at 65 miles an hour will be signed for 70 miles an hour on implementation.
• Areas now posted at 55 miles an hour will remain at 55. Those areas include: work zones, tunnels, mainline toll plazas and the Eastern slope of the Allegheny mountain.

The conversion will allow more consistency for Turnpike drivers, DeFebo said. "There will be only two possible speed limits, 70 miles an hour in most places and 55 in Turnpike work zones, tunnels and toll barrier plazas," he said.