U.S. Route 220 — LLMpedia

U.S. Route 220
Country	United States
Type	US
Route	220
Length mi	678
Established	1926
Direction a	South
Terminus a	Rockingham, North Carolina
Direction b	North
Terminus b	South Waverly, Pennsylvania
States	North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania

Contents

U.S. Route 220 is a north–south United States Numbered Highway running approximately 678 miles through the eastern United States, connecting Rockingham with South Waverly. The route traverses portions of Piedmont, the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Allegheny Plateau, and the Susquehanna River basin, linking regional centers such as Greensboro, North Carolina, Roanoke, Virginia, Martinsburg, West Virginia, and Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Established in the 1926 federal highway plan, the corridor has been realigned, expanded, and paralleled by limited-access highways including segments of the Interstate Highway System.

Route description

U.S. Route 220 begins near Rockingham and proceeds northward through the Sandhills toward Greensboro, intersecting major corridors like Interstate 73, Interstate 85, and U.S. Route 29. North of Greensboro the route ascends toward the Blue Ridge Parkway vicinity, passing near Piedmont Triad International Airport and skirting communities such as Burlington and Reidsville. Entering Virginia, the highway serves the Roanoke Valley and connects with Interstate 81 at Roanoke, running adjacent to features like Mill Mountain and the James River headwaters. Continuing into West Virginia, US 220 traverses the Eastern Panhandle, intersecting state routes that serve Martinsburg and regions proximate to Harper's Ferry and the Appalachian Trail. The route briefly clips Maryland’s western panhandle near Cumberland and provides access to historic sites such as Fort Necessity National Battlefield and locales near Allegany County. In Pennsylvania the highway follows valleys of tributaries to the Susquehanna River, passing through Williamsport—home of the Little League World Series—and terminating near the New York border at South Waverly, adjacent to Waverly, New York and the Chemung River.

The corridor that became U.S. Route 220 includes earlier 19th-century turnpikes and 20th-century state roads linking Charlotte-area markets with the Delaware River watershed. Designated in the 1926 U.S. Highway plan, the route replaced various numbered state routes in North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, US 220 was realigned to improve grades near the Blue Ridge Mountains and to bypass downtowns including Roanoke and Martinsburg. Postwar improvements paralleled initiatives from agencies such as the Bureau of Public Roads and later the Federal Highway Administration, with notable projects intersecting the expansion of the Interstate Highway System, including interchanges with Interstate 40, Interstate 81, and Interstate 78. In the late 20th century, limited-access upgrades created bypasses around Bedford, Pennsylvania, Williamsport, and portions of Greensboro, reflecting trends in suburbanization tied to metropolitan regions like Piedmont Triad, Roanoke Metropolitan Area, and the Harrisburg–Carlisle metropolitan statistical area. Preservation debates involving stakeholders such as the National Trust for Historic Preservation arose where alignments affected historic districts and sites like National Road-era properties and Civil War battlefield areas near Petersburg, West Virginia and Gettysburg-related corridors.

The highway intersects numerous major routes and interstates: - In North Carolina: junctions with U.S. Route 74, U.S. Route 421, Interstate 85, and Interstate 73, providing links to Charlotte and Wilmington corridors. - In Virginia: connections with Interstate 64, Interstate 81, and U.S. Route 11 near Roanoke and the Shenandoah Valley. - In West Virginia: crossings with Interstate 70-corridors to Baltimore and with state routes serving Martinsburg and the Potomac River basin. - In Maryland: proximity to Interstate 68 and access to Cumberland and Frostburg. - In Pennsylvania: interchanges with Interstate 99, U.S. Route 15, U.S. Route 322, and links to Interstate 80 near the Allegheny Plateau and Williamsport, facilitating freight movement toward the Great Lakes and the Northeast megalopolis.

Designated special routes have included business loops, bypasses, and temporary alignments managed by state departments such as the North Carolina Department of Transportation, the Virginia Department of Transportation, and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Notable special routes serve downtown centers in Greensboro, Roanoke, Martinsburg, and Williamsport, often signed as business routes to connect historic central business districts and landmarks like Old Salem Museums & Gardens, Mill Mountain Star, and Harrisburg Transportation Center-area nodes. Temporary detours were established during construction projects near Interstate 81 expansions and slope stabilization efforts in Allegany County.

Planned improvements include interchange upgrades, corridor widening, and safety projects coordinated among agencies such as the Federal Highway Administration, the North Carolina Department of Transportation, Virginia Department of Transportation, and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Priorities target congestion relief in the Piedmont Triad and Roanoke regions, safety enhancements along mountain grades approaching the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Allegheny Front, and bridge rehabilitation near Susquehanna River tributaries. Freight and intermodal planning involves coordination with entities like the Surface Transportation Board and regional planning organizations including the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)s serving Greensboro and Williamsport, with some projects eligible for funding via federal surface transportation bills such as measures enacted by the United States Congress.