Interstate 279
Route information
Maintained by PennDOT
Length:	13.20 mi[1] (21.24 km)
Existed:	1972 – present
Major junctions
South end:	I-376/US 22/US 30 in Pittsburgh
	I-579/PA 28 in Pittsburgh
North end:	I-79 in Franklin Park
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main • Auxiliary • Business Roads in Pennsylvania Interstate • US • State • Legislative ← PA 278 I-280 →

Interstate 279 (abbreviated I-279) is a north–south Interstate Highway spur that lies entirely within Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Its southern end is at Interstate 376 at the Fort Pitt Bridge in Pittsburgh, and the north end is in Franklin Park at Interstate 79. It primarily serves at the main access route between Pittsburgh and its northern suburbs.

Route description [link]

Interstate 279 is locally referred to as Parkway North. Its southern terminus is at Interstate 376 in downtown Pittsburgh. It runs concurrently with U.S. Route 19 Truck from its southern terminus to exit 4. (US Route 19 Truck continues on Interstate 376 west.) I-279 crosses the Fort Duquesne Bridge over the Allegheny River, providing easy access to Heinz Field and PNC Park. Interstate 579 intersects I-279, but is only accessible by southbound traffic; likewise, traffic from I-579 can only head northbound on I-279 by the Interstate 279 Interchange. I-279 features two reversible high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes. The HOV lanes end at exit 5, which is an interchange with US 19. The road becomes more suburban and rural as it continues to head north. It has two additional interchanges, Bellevue/West View and Camp Horne Road. After Camp Horne Road, there are no exits until its terminus five miles later. The interstate terminates at its parent, Interstate 79. Like the interchange with I-579, this is also a partial interchange. Traffic on I-279 is only permitted to exit northbound on I-79, while only traffic heading southbound on I-79 can exit on to I-279 south.

History [link]

Interstate 279 was first proposed in 1958, to run along what is now I-79 between the current I-376 in Carnegie and the current I-279 in Franklin Park. In 1972, its route was swapped with I-79, putting I-279 onto its current route, although only the portion in downtown and the Fort Duquesne Bridge were built at the time.^[2]

In 1973, the designation was extended from downtown over Parkway West (what is now I-376) to I-79.^[2] This section became part of I-376 in 2009, and the I-279 signs were taken down there.^[3]

I-279 from Fort Duquesne Bridge to its current northern terminus in Franklin Park was approved on June 4, 1975 but constructed from 1985 to 1989. From 1997 to 2003, various ramps, the Fort Pitt Bridge, and nearby tunnels were reconstructed. A direct connection from I-279 south to I-376 east was opened in 2002.^[4]

A tragedy occurred on the reversible HOV lanes in 1995 when a negligent highway worker failed to close the outbound gates, leading to a head-on collision that killed six. In 2006, to help prevent a repeat of this incident, automatic "fast acting gates" were activated at the southern entrances to these HOV lanes in downtown Pittsburgh.^[5]

Exit list [link]

The entire highway is in Allegheny County.

Location	Mile	km	Old exit	New exit[6]	Destinations	Notes
Pittsburgh			6A		I-376 (Penn-Lincoln Parkway, US 22, US 30) – Downtown Pittsburgh, Monroeville, Pittsburgh International Airport	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
			6C	1A	Fort Duquesne Boulevard – Convention Center, Strip District	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
Allegheny River			Fort Duquesne Bridge
Pittsburgh			7A	1B	North Shore - Heinz Field, PNC Park, Carnegie Science Center	No northbound entrance
			7B	1C	PA 65 north (Ohio River Boulevard) to US 19
					9th Street	Southbound exit and northbound entrance; HOV only
			7C	1D	PA 28 north / Chestnut Street, Ohio Street – Etna	Southbound exit is via exit 8B
			8A	2A	I-579 south (Veterans Bridge)	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
			8B	2B	East Street	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
			9	3	Hazlett Street	Northbound exit and entrance
			10	4	Venture Street	Southbound exit and entrance; provides access to US 19 Truck north
			11	4	US 19 Truck north (McKnight Road) / Evergreen Road	North end of US 19 Truck overlap; northbound exit and southbound entrance
Ross Township			12	5	US 19 (Perrysville Avenue)
			14	7	Bellevue, West View
Ohio Township			15	8	Camp Horne Road
Franklin Park			20		I-79 north – Erie	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi      Concurrency terminus •      Closed/former •      Incomplete access •      Unopened

See also [link]

• U.S. Roads portal
• Pennsylvania portal
• Pittsburgh portal

References [link]

External links [link]

• Kitsko, Jeffrey. "Interstate 279". Pennsylvania Highways. https://www.pahighways.com/interstates/I279.html. 

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