U.S. Route 220
U.S. Route 220 is a spur route of US 20. It runs in a north–south layout in the eastern United States, unlike its parent route as well as conventionally even-numbered highways, which run east-west. US 220 extends for from an intersection with US 1 in Rockingham, North Carolina, to its interchange with the Southern Tier Expressway in South Waverly, Pennsylvania. Some sections of the route are part of the Appalachian Development Highway System's Corridor O as well as I-73 in North Carolina. US 220 is designated as a spur route of US 20 but the route does not intersect US 20 or connect to other spurs of US 20.
US 220 was assigned in 1926 as part of the establishment of the U.S. Highway System. At the time, it extended from Cumberland, Maryland, to the New York–Pennsylvania border at Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania. One year later, US 220 was realigned north of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, to connect to the New York state line at South Waverly; this supplanted most of what was originally designated U.S. Route 711. US 220 was extended south through Virginia by 1935 and to its current southern terminus by 1941.
Route description
North Carolina
US 220 begins at an at-grade interchange with US 1 southwest of Rockingham and northeast of US 1's grade-separated interchange with US 74. Most of US 220 in North Carolina is a four-lane divided highway, and it is a freeway between I-85 and US 1 and US 421 in southern Greensboro. From Rockingham, US 220 travels north through Richmond County to Ellerbe, where US 220 begins to follow a newly constructed four-lane bypass. This section of the route is co-designated as I-74 and I-73. The old US 220 alignment, signed as US 220 Alternate, passes through the towns of Ellerbe and Norman while the new highway goes around the communities.The two highways continue in close proximity through Montgomery and Randolph counties, serving the towns of Candor, Biscoe, Star, and Seagrove. US 220 Alternate rejoins its parent near the North Carolina Zoo, at which point the old path of US 220 continues into Asheboro and Randleman as US 220 Business. The US 220 freeway, meanwhile, skirts the west side of both cities and proceeds to Level Cross, a small community south of the Guilford County line. The business route merges back into the mainline here, and US 220 travels alone into Guilford County.
Outside Greensboro, US 220 intersects I-85 and US 421 before intersecting I-85 Business and eventually merging with I-40 in the city. US 220 exits I-40 later, following US 29 and US 70 onto O'Henry Boulevard. The three routes separate northeast of the city center, with US 220 continuing west on Wendover Avenue along the northern edge of downtown Greensboro. It eventually exits onto Battleground Avenue, which takes the route north out of Greensboro and into Summerfield and Rockingham County. Another business route splits off US 220 near Madison to serve both Madison and Mayodan, which US 220 itself bypasses to the east. It returns to US 220 north of Stoneville, the last major community along the route before it crosses into Virginia.
Virginia
US 220 enters the state from the south just south of Martinsville. It uses freeway spurs to bypass Martinsville and Rocky Mount. US 220 in Virginia is a divided four-lane highway with a speed limit for most of the distance between Martinsville and Roanoke. US 220 is a winding road in several stretches, and there have been many accidents. There is also a sharp speed decrease in Boones Mill, giving the town a reputation as a speed trap. The proposed I-73 would generally parallel US 220 between Greensboro, North Carolina, and Roanoke, though funds have not been allocated for the project and some local residents prefer efforts to fix US 220. It is co-signed with I-581 from downtown Roanoke to I-81 north of the city.The route continues along I-81 northbound until Daleville, at an interchange with US 220 Alternate. US 220 leaves the freeway and once again becomes a four-lane road through Fincastle, the county seat of Botetourt County changing to an upgraded two-lane road at Eagle Rock until just outside Iron Gate, Virginia, in eastern Alleghany County, Virginia. Locally, a section in Botetourt County was renamed in 2022 to honor Norvel Lee, a native of Eagle Rock who became a Tuskegee airman, Virginia's first Black Olympic champion, decorated federal civil servant and successful plaintiff in a desegregation lawsuit. US 220 continues on an old two-lane road until it joins up with I-64 westbound until Covington, the Alleghany County seat, and where Lee was jailed for refusing to move from a now-illegal whites-only seat in a railroad car. From there, it continues on a primarily two-lane mountainous route until it reaches the West Virginia state line.
West Virginia
The highway enters West Virginia 2 miles south of Harper in Pendleton County. From the state line, US 220 parallels the South Branch Potomac River as it progresses northward. 13 miles north of Harper, US 220 passes through Franklin, where it intersects with US 33. The route crosses into Grant County approximately north of Franklin.Within Grant County, US 220 intersects the concurrent routes of West Virginia Route 28 and West Virginia Route 55 in Petersburg. The two state highways join US 220 eastward into Hardy County. WV 28 and WV 55 remain concurrent to Moorefield, where WV 55 splits from US 220 and WV 28. North of Moorefield, US 220 and WV 28 intersects US 48. US 220 and WV 28 remain concurrent into Hampshire County, where US 220 and WV 28 meet US 50 in Junction. WV 28 departs US 220, following US 50 to the east, while US 220 joins US 50 westward into Mineral County. This stretch of US 220 is known as the Northwestern Turnpike.
At the top of Knobly Mountain northwest of Ridgeville, US 220 splits from US 50 and resumes a northerly alignment as it descends into the New Creek Valley. It is known as Cut Off Road south of WV 972 and New Creek Drive from there to Keyser, the county seat of Mineral County, where it becomes known as Mineral Street. In the center of the city, located 7 miles north of US 50, US 220 intersects WV 46. At the northern edge of Keyser, US 220 crosses the North Branch Potomac River via Memorial Bridge, leaving West Virginia and entering Maryland.
Maryland
US 220 enters Maryland at McCoole, Allegany County, and becomes known as McMullen Highway. In McCoole, US 220 intersects the eastern terminus of Maryland Route 135. Past MD 135, US 220 turns to the northeast, paralleling the North Branch of the Potomac River to the east. 12 miles into Maryland, with West Virginia visible to the right, US 220 intersects the western terminus of MD 956, a connector to a secondary state highway in West Virginia. Continuing north in the river valley, US 220 enters Cresaptown, where US 220 intersects with the east end of MD 53. 4 miles north of Cresaptown, US 220 joins with I-68 and US 40, known as the National Freeway west of Cumberland and the Baltimore Pike east of the city.The three routes head across Wills Creek and through Cumberland to exit 46, US 220 turns north again onto an upgraded roadway opened to traffic on September 18, 2000. The highway heads north for a few miles before crossing the Mason–Dixon Line into Pennsylvania. The section of US 220 between I-68 and I-80 near Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, is designated as Corridor O by the Appalachian Development Highway System.
Pennsylvania
After crossing the state line from Maryland, US 220 runs north through Bedford County as Cumberland Road to Bedford, where it divides into US 220 Business, which enters the town of Bedford, and the main branch, which joins the southern terminus of I-99 at an interchange with the Pennsylvania Turnpike. I-99 heads north along US 220, and the resulting overlap duplex continues northeast along the west side of Dunning and Brush mountains. The freeway continues into Blair County, where it serves the towns of Altoona and Tyrone. I-99 and US 220 soon enter Centre County in the vicinity of Port Matilda. Here, US 322 joins the alignment and all three routes continue eastward for to State College.North of State College, US 322 diverges eastward at the Mount Nittany Interchange while US 220 and I-99 continue northward toward Pleasant Gap. The concurrency travels past Bellefonte to I-80, where I-99 currently ends. All of I-99 is known as the Bud Shuster Highway, named for the U.S. Representative who championed the I-99 designation. US 220 follows I-80 eastward for to Clinton County before exiting northward as a recently upgraded, short section of super-two limited-access highway before once again becoming a limited-access expressway traveling through the east side of Lock Haven. Past Lock Haven, US 220 runs alongside the west branch of the Susquehanna River, becoming an at-grade road north of Jersey Shore for 6.2 miles until it reaches W Fourth St south of Williamsport. It finally becomes a freeway once again at Williamsport as it joins I-180, here an east–west highway, and US 15.
I-180 and US 220 head through the center of the city, briefly overlapping with US 15 in the downtown district, before splitting near Halls Station. The Interstate Highway turns to the south, following the Susquehanna River toward Muncy while US 220 exits the expressway onto a two-lane road that first travels east to Hughesville, a borough based around US 220's junction with Pennsylvania Route 405. US 220 heads generally northeastward from Hughesville, passing through Laporte on its way to Dushore. It is here that the route changes directions for the final time, assuming a northerly alignment that it largely follows for the remainder of its routing. A short section of super-two limited-access freeway is used to bypass Towanda, a borough north of Dushore on the banks of the main Susquehanna River. One interchange along this stretch links US 220 to US 6.
Past Towanda, US 220 continues on a northerly path, paralleling the Susquehanna River to the borough of Athens. Here, US 220 becomes a freeway for the final time at an exit with PA 199, the main north–south highway through the neighboring boroughs of Athens, Sayre, and South Waverly. US 220 bypasses all three to the west, proceeding toward the New York state line. The route comes to an end at its interchange with the Southern Tier Expressway, which at this point has briefly crossed into Pennsylvania, within sight of the state line.