The idea of a toll highway on the I-80 corridor dates back to the original planning of the Pennsylvania Turnpike in the 1930s. The "Keystone Shortway" was first proposed in 1938 as a toll road along the future I-80 corridor. Following delays caused by World War II, the Pennsylvania Legislature authorized the Shortway Turnpike from Stroudsburg to Sharon in 1954. With the passage of the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, the Federal Highway AdministrationFHWA designated the Shortway as Interstate 80 and federal and state funds were used to commence construction in 1960. Construction of the entire facility from New Jersey to Ohio was completed in 1970.
I-80 Opening at the Milesburg Interchange (Federal Highway Administration)
In addition to its designation as the "Keystone Shortway," I-80 is more formally known as the Zehnder H. Confair Memorial Highway, after the state senator who championed the highway.
Because of continual challenges in identifying sufficient resources to adequately maintain I-80, numerous administrations in Pennsylvania have explored the possibility of tolling, including: Governor Milton Shapp in the 1970s; Governor Richard Thornburgh in the 1980s when the Turnpike Organization, Extension and Toll Road Conversion Act (Act 61) was enacted; and Governor Tom Ridge in 1994 based on a draft report entitled "Feasibility of Implementing Tolls on Interstate Highways in Pennsylvania."
In March 1996, Governor Ridge specifically called for placing tolls on I-80 as part of a proposed financial plan to assist Pennsylvania in meeting its highway construction, reconstruction, and maintenance obligations. However, no state legislative action was adopted, in part because of a lack of federal enabling legislation authorizing tolling
Contact Us