Breezewood, Pennsylvania
Breezewood is an unincorporated town in East Providence Township, Bedford County in south-central Pennsylvania, United States.
Breezewood, Pennsylvania | |
|---|---|
Unincorporated town | |
The stretch of U.S. Route 30 in Breezewood, Pennsylvania is one of the few gaps in the Interstate Highway System. A portion of I-70 uses this surface street to connect the untolled interstate highway with the Pennsylvania Turnpike. | |
Breezewood Breezewood | |
| Coordinates: 39°59′49″N 78°14′26″W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| County | Bedford |
| Township | East Providence |
| Population (2020) | |
| • Total | 178 |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP codes | 15533 |
| Area code | 814 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1170190 |
Along a traditional pathway for Native Americans, European settlers, and British troops during colonial times, in the early 20th century, the small valley that became known as Breezewood was a popular stopping place for automobile travelers on the Lincoln Highway, beginning in 1913. Greyhound Lines opened a Post House facility in the town in 1935; it closed in 2004.
In 1940, Breezewood was designated exit 6 on the just-opened Pennsylvania Turnpike. In the 1960s, Breezewood became the junction of the Turnpike and the new Interstate 70. Later renumbered exit 12, it is now exit 161 on the Turnpike following a change to mileage-based exit numbering.
Breezewood has been labeled a "tourist trap" and choke point because traffic between I-70 and the Turnpike, which carries I-70 westward from Breezewood, is routed along surface streets lined with gas stations, hotels, restaurants, and traffic lights, rather than directly via a freeway-to-freeway junction. This segment of I-70 is one of the few parts of the Interstate Highway System which is not a controlled-access highway.