I've traveled that road thousands of times, and I remember Howard Johnson's fondly. I've even done some work on the south side plaza at Midway. I miss the other plazas that my family used to stop at in the 1960s that are now out of service.
When our family would stop at the Midway Plaza when I was a kid, I remember running through the underground tunnel with my brother. Fun stuff as a kid in the 1960's.
I remember Route 9, now 476, and the rock cuts constantly falling every day We had rocks on the road every day Now they have been widening the highway for 30 years But I remember the way it used to be Allentown had 4000 people when I was a kid Now it has 138,000 people I miss all the farms
I remember eating at Howard Johnsons on the PA Turnpike. I also remember buying things from the gift shop as a kid. It was a great adventure for a kid to travel the turnpike in the 50’s and 60’s.
I remember as a kid my family would travel the pike every summer for family vacation to fairless hills levittown pa to visit family. I remember going thru 6 (six ) tunnels and also seeing the construction or dare i say destruction of the tunnels.
I miss the former service plaza on the eastbound side in New Sewickley Township, Beaver County. It as only about 3 minutes from my house and it was possible to drive down the hill, ark in the employees lot, and shop. I was a bit of a night owl and it was useful as a late night place to get things like milk, snacks, and even a meal from Roy Rodgers when everything else around was closed. It's now a Turnpike Commission maintenance lot. I know technically you weren't supposed to do that but a lot of locals did the same and I know the staff didn't say much because they were all locals too.
I remember these plazas from my childhood when my parents took the family from Detroit visit see relatives in Baltimore. The PA Tpk always had the nicest travel plazas, made to look like old houses. PS the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission was wise to avoid routing the road through cities.
just to say that i have stopped at roy rogers and sbarro's many times. the food is great. roy's roast beef tastes like home made, and their fried chicken is terrific too. there are only a few of them left on the pike, so please stop and try them when travelling. sbarro is a decent pizza shop that used to be in every mall i went to and airports too. now they are hard to find. glad they are still alive and well on the pike. i do remember going through the old now closed tunnels as a child. wish i cloud see them in person again, but enjoy seeing them here on you tube,
Nowadays, the above-mentioned original service plaza is no longer at the midway of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. As a matter of fact, the above-mentioned service plaza is closer to Ohio than to New Jersey. Why haven't the men and women employed at the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission changed the name of the above-mentioned service plaza? Perhaps the name Bedford Service Plaza would be apropos; as that proposed name would harmonize with the Somerset Service Plaza, New Stanton Service Plaza, and so forth 🤔🤔🤔🤔.
The last time I took the Turnpike (before smartphone, but Garmin GPS), I accidentally got into the EZ Pass lane and couldn't get over, that was an expensive mistake.
When i was a kid we used to use thep tunnel under the highway to the other plaza. It was closed sometime in the 80s or 90s. You can thank "FAST EDDY" Rendel for the highest tolls in the world on the TP. One half BILLION dollars are taken right off the top to prop up PennDot and all there wasteful spending, plus the turnpike is also their debt service on bond issues. IE PennDot's cash cow.
It wasn’t Rendell, it was Corbett. He desperately needed to raise money but refused to consider raising taxes so he extorted the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission into giving up their entire reserve used for maintenance and expansion and demanded future payments off the top. As a result, the Turnpike is particularly vulnerable to inflation since they are now pay-as-they-go without any possibility of putting money away for future repairs or expansion. And now you know why what cost $7 in the 1990s has soared to nearly $50 today.
@ Doesn’t matter. Corbett did it during the recession, which was a global event caused largely by the deregulation of the banking industry by the Republican majority in the US Congress. Don’t try to be clever and intimate things. First off, you’re wrong. Second, you’re bad at it. Just state it clearly so you can be properly denounced.
@@ThomasRapp-l4l It doesn’t matter. Corbett did it, and it was because of the global recession directly attributable to the deregulation of the banking industry by the Republicans in the US Congress. Also, stop trying to be clever. You’re not good at it, and you’re wrong anyway. State it clearly so we can properly denounce you.
I really like the old service plazas. However, I don't miss them because I've sworn off taking the turnpike when it cost me over $50 to go from Pittsburgh to Breezewood. I know that it is less if I use EZ Pass but I used the turnpike once or twice a year and it doesn't make sense to let them hang onto my money when I'm not using it.
I'm coming to believe that is in fact the case. One of the main sources i was used was the PA Turnpike Commission's interactive timeline. the PTC's interactive timeline states, "Standard Oil Co of PA held the lease and subcontracted the dining areas and gift shops to Howard Johnson's". However Photographs of the period show Esso labelling at the plazas, which is the hyphenated name for S.O.N.J. To tell you the truth, I never even heard of a Standard Oil Company of PA. So either the S.O.N.J. was for some strange reason operating under a different name in this deal, or the PTC needs to correct their timeline.
It's surprising that the PA Turnpike is the most expensive toll road in the WORLD. Thanks for the video Redoubt!
The most expensive and worst conditioned toll road. Dirt roads are better maintained.
Run by political appointees, plenty of corruption.
@OutrightHistory In my humble opinion, the Pennsylvania Turnpike is the most antiquated toll motorway, or tollway, on Planet Earth.
I've traveled that road thousands of times, and I remember Howard Johnson's fondly. I've even done some work on the south side plaza at Midway. I miss the other plazas that my family used to stop at in the 1960s that are now out of service.
Nice job as always! Thanks!
I've stopped at this plaza several times in the last few years. Beautiful building.
I can remember the covered wagon at the south Midway Plaza as we travel back and forth from Pittsburgh to Harrisburg in the late 50’s, early 60’s.
While my dad was serving in Europe during WW II, his dad - my grandfather - worked on construction of the PA pike.
When our family would stop at the Midway Plaza when I was a kid, I remember running through the underground tunnel with my brother. Fun stuff as a kid in the 1960's.
I remember Route 9, now 476, and the rock cuts constantly falling every day
We had rocks on the road every day
Now they have been widening the highway for 30 years
But I remember the way it used to be
Allentown had 4000 people when I was a kid
Now it has 138,000 people
I miss all the farms
I remember eating at Howard Johnsons on the PA Turnpike. I also remember buying things from the gift shop as a kid. It was a great adventure for a kid to travel the turnpike in the 50’s and 60’s.
I'm not from Penn. but I've driven that turnpike in the 1960s, stopping at the original HoJo restaurants. Mostly west of Midway.
Have stopped at midway for many years on the PA speedway. Great place.
I remember as a kid my family would travel the pike every summer for family vacation to fairless hills levittown pa to visit family. I remember going thru 6 (six ) tunnels and also seeing the construction or dare i say destruction of the tunnels.
I miss the former service plaza on the eastbound side in New Sewickley Township, Beaver County. It as only about 3 minutes from my house and it was possible to drive down the hill, ark in the employees lot, and shop. I was a bit of a night owl and it was useful as a late night place to get things like milk, snacks, and even a meal from Roy Rodgers when everything else around was closed. It's now a Turnpike Commission maintenance lot.
I know technically you weren't supposed to do that but a lot of locals did the same and I know the staff didn't say much because they were all locals too.
I remember these plazas from my childhood when my parents took the family from Detroit visit see relatives in Baltimore. The PA Tpk always had the nicest travel plazas, made to look like old houses.
PS the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission was wise to avoid routing the road through cities.
Great video
That plaza had a squish penny machine with Pittsburgh spelled without the H.
@@davidkacprzyk1989 A friend of mine has an old wall safe made in Pittsburgh spelled without the h.
I'm glad they preserved it. Very crowded when i was there. Long lines for Sbarro.
Great video! Thanks for sharing!
Does the tunnel still exist? I realize it wouldnt be publicly accessible, but it would be neat to see a video of it if it's still there.
To my knowledge it still exists. For many years after its public closure was used for maintenance purposes between the two plazas.
As a lifelong Pennsylvania resident, I can say that ACT44 was nothing short of down right criminal!
just to say that i have stopped at roy rogers and sbarro's many times. the food is great. roy's roast beef tastes like home made, and their fried chicken is terrific too. there are only a few of them left on the pike, so please stop and try them when travelling. sbarro is a decent pizza shop that used to be in every mall i went to and airports too. now they are hard to find. glad they are still alive and well on the pike. i do remember going through the old now closed tunnels as a child. wish i cloud see them in person again, but enjoy seeing them here on you tube,
Nowadays, the above-mentioned original service plaza is no longer at the midway of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. As a matter of fact, the above-mentioned service plaza is closer to Ohio than to New Jersey. Why haven't the men and women employed at the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission changed the name of the above-mentioned service plaza? Perhaps the name Bedford Service Plaza would be apropos; as that proposed name would harmonize with the Somerset Service Plaza, New Stanton Service Plaza, and so forth 🤔🤔🤔🤔.
I have no inside knowledge, but I would think the name has been retained due to its historic nature.
The last time I took the Turnpike (before smartphone, but Garmin GPS), I accidentally got into the EZ Pass lane and couldn't get over, that was an expensive mistake.
When i was a kid we used to use thep tunnel under the highway to the other plaza. It was closed sometime in the 80s or 90s. You can thank "FAST EDDY" Rendel for the highest tolls in the world on the TP. One half BILLION dollars are taken right off the top to prop up PennDot and all there wasteful spending, plus the turnpike is also their debt service on bond issues. IE PennDot's cash cow.
It wasn’t Rendell, it was Corbett. He desperately needed to raise money but refused to consider raising taxes so he extorted the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission into giving up their entire reserve used for maintenance and expansion and demanded future payments off the top. As a result, the Turnpike is particularly vulnerable to inflation since they are now pay-as-they-go without any possibility of putting money away for future repairs or expansion.
And now you know why what cost $7 in the 1990s has soared to nearly $50 today.
@Dave-ms3ri Who was in control of the state government before Corrbet? Hnmmmm
@ Doesn’t matter. Corbett did it during the recession, which was a global event caused largely by the deregulation of the banking industry by the Republican majority in the US Congress.
Don’t try to be clever and intimate things. First off, you’re wrong. Second, you’re bad at it. Just state it clearly so you can be properly denounced.
@@ThomasRapp-l4l It doesn’t matter. Corbett did it, and it was because of the global recession directly attributable to the deregulation of the banking industry by the Republicans in the US Congress.
Also, stop trying to be clever. You’re not good at it, and you’re wrong anyway. State it clearly so we can properly denounce you.
I really like the old service plazas. However, I don't miss them because I've sworn off taking the turnpike when it cost me over $50 to go from Pittsburgh to Breezewood.
I know that it is less if I use EZ Pass but I used the turnpike once or twice a year and it doesn't make sense to let them hang onto my money when I'm not using it.
I thought Esso was the Standard Oil of New Jersey.
I'm coming to believe that is in fact the case. One of the main sources i was used was the PA Turnpike Commission's interactive timeline. the PTC's interactive timeline states, "Standard Oil Co of PA held the lease and subcontracted the dining areas and gift shops to Howard Johnson's". However Photographs of the period show Esso labelling at the plazas, which is the hyphenated name for S.O.N.J. To tell you the truth, I never even heard of a Standard Oil Company of PA. So either the S.O.N.J. was for some strange reason operating under a different name in this deal, or the PTC needs to correct their timeline.
Roy Roger's has the best fried chicken and great bacon cheese burgers.
Gas is overpriced and the food is terrible.