Pennsylvania Route 42

Pennsylvania Route 42
Route information
Maintained by PennDOT
Length	58.513 mi[1] (94.168 km)
Existed	1928–present
Major junctions
South end	PA 61 in Centralia
Major intersections	PA 487 in Catawissa US 11 in Bloomsburg I-80 / PA 44 in Buckhorn PA 254 in Millville PA 442 in Iola PA 118 near Unityville PA 239 in North Mountain US 220 in Muncy Valley
North end	US 220 in Laporte
Location
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
Counties	Columbia, Lycoming, Sullivan
Highway system
Pennsylvania State Route System Interstate US State Scenic Legislative
← PA 41 → PA 43

Pennsylvania Route 42 (PA 42) is a 58.6-mile-long (94.3 km) state route that is located in central Pennsylvania. The southern terminus of the route is situated at PA 61 in Centralia. The northern terminus is located at U.S. Route 220 (US 220) in Laporte.

This route heads north through Columbia County and passes through Catawissa before it crosses the Susquehanna River to Bloomsburg. In Bloomsburg, PA 42 forms a concurrency with US 11 and has an interchange with Interstate 80 (I-80). Past Bloomsburg, the route continues north through Millville and runs through the eastern part of Lycoming County. PA 42 heads into Sullivan County and runs concurrent with US 220 between Beech Glen and Muncy Valley before it loops west through Eagles Mere and reaches its terminus in Laporte.

PA 42 was originally designated in 1927 to run from US 1 in Oxford north to the New York border in South Waverly. When first designated, the route ran concurrent with US 120 (now PA 61) between Reading and Centralia and US 220 between Laporte and South Waverly.

In 1928, the concurrencies with US 120 and US 220 were removed, splitting PA 42 into two sections. The southern section ran from the Maryland border south of Chrome north to US 222 (now US 222 Bus.) in Reading while the northern section ran from US 120 (now PA 61) in Centralia north to US 220 in Laporte. In 1935, the portion of PA 42 between Oxford and Reading was replaced by US 122 (now PA 10), with the northern terminus of the southern section cut back to US 1 in Barnsley. The southern section of PA 42 was decommissioned in the 1940s, with PA 272 replacing the portion between the Maryland border and Chrome.