The Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike is the common name of a 13-mile (21 km) stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike that was bypassed in 1968 when a modern stretch opened to ease traffic congestion in the tunnels. In this case, the Sideling Hill Tunnel and Rays Hill Tunnel were bypassed, as was one of the Turnpike's travel plazas. The bypass is located just east of the heavily congested Breezewood interchange for Interstate 70 (I-70) eastbound at what is now I-76 exit 161. The section of the turnpike was at one time part of the South Pennsylvania Railroad.
Nature is starting to reclaim parts of the original 1940s roadway.
Eastern portal of the Sideling Hill Tunnel
Western portal of the Rays Hill Tunnel
Test rumble strips from the SNAP project, just outside the western portal of the Rays Hill Tunnel
Memorial Tunnel
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The Memorial Tunnel is a 2,802 feet (854 m) two-lane vehicular tunnel that formerly carried the West Virginia Turnpike through/under Paint Creek Mountain in Standard, West Virginia in Kanawha County. Closed to interstate traffic since 1987, the tunnel serves as the Center for National Response for military first responders to train for various situations that may arise in such a location without alarming the general public. In 2020, the Center for National Response ceased operations at the tunnel. In February 2022, an agreement was made between the West Virginia Adjutant General's office and a local farmer to utilize the facility to grow mushrooms.
