Restrooms and Limited Food Services to Reopen at ALL PA Turnpike Plazas
Middleton, PA – The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) announced today it will reopen all 17 of its service plazas Friday, March 20.
The re-openings will be effective beginning at 7 a.m., officials said.
Restrooms inside all service plazas will once again be open 24 hours.
The outdoor portable toilets will remain in place at the service plazas for approximately one week, according to a statement from PTC officials.
Additionally, limited food options will be available at all service plazas starting on Friday at 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. for take-out only.
Thereafter, and until further notice, the PTC says food will be served from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. except at North Midway and Valley Forge locations, which will offer food 24/7.
The #PATurnpike will reopen service plaza restrooms & limited food services:
🚻Fri, 3/20, 7 am, restrooms will be open 24/7.
🍔*8 am to 6 pm, limited food options, carry-out only.
⛽Fuel & convenience stores remain open. https://t.co/cG0PdRlm7W
*3/21, open at 7 am pic.twitter.com/scrWBtn4tO— Pennsylvania Turnpike (@PA_Turnpike) March 19, 2020
Officials also noted all service plazas will have limited staffing, assured travelers that fuel and all convenience stores inside the service plazas will continue to remain open 24 hours a day.
Transportation Nation Network (TNN) was the first to break the news that on Monday, the PTC said it would no longer accept cash or credit cards at any interchange statewide.
All tolls are being assessed electronically via E-ZPass or the PTC’s TOLL BY PLATE program.
On Thursday, the PTC also indicated truckers operating with special hauling permits for overweight/over-dimensional vehicles (Class 9) will still be able to travel the PA Turnpike.
“However, they must follow modified procedures during the temporary all-electronic tolling period,” the PTC stated. “All customers in this category must print and carry a hard copy of the approved permit. Tolling personnel at designated interchanges will be available to assist with the appropriate lane assignments. All haulers must apply for a permit within two weeks of the anticipated travel day.”
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While the PTC has heard the voices of the trucking community, PennDOT continues to keep more than a dozen of its rest areas closed.
Following PennDOT’s announcement on Wednesday that it was partially reopening 13 of its shuttered rest stops, trucking groups are once again speaking out.
READ the latest on what trucking groups and truckers are saying about the PennDOT closures HERE.
Photo courtesy of PTC
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Well after this week’s trip out to Pennsylvania I have learned a couple of valuable lessons. 1. Government is best when it is least. The smaller it is, the better. 2. When government says they are doing something to keep you safe and healthy be prepared. And so I will be. From now on I’ll be keeping a 5 gallon bucket with plastic bags with me, along with a gallon of water to wash my hands. I don’t need to get dysentery to save me from the Chinese Crud known as COVID-19. I may be still upset enough to dispose of the bags at the toll plaza. Let’s just say their prices are enough to squeeze the crap out of anybody and I’ll leave the evidence to prove it. How stupid of them to close the bathrooms and put port-a-potties out side with no way to clean your hands. Then invite you into their so called convenience store to handle packages of food and other items. God only knows how many folks came into contact with fecal matter after this “brilliant” government decision.