Interstate 68

Length: 116 miles
West end: I-79 in Morgantown, WV
East end: I-70/US 522/US 40 in Hancock, MD

Interstate 68 (abbreviated I-68) is an Interstate Highway in the United States. It runs from Morgantown, West Virginia, at Interstate 79 to Hancock, Maryland, at Interstate 70. During its construction, the route was designated U.S. Highway 48. Upon its completion as a 4-lane highway around 1989, US 48 was de-commissioned for the second time and was re-designated I-68. Interstate 68 is also known as Corridor E of the Appalachian Development Highway System. It is also known as the National Freeway in Maryland, named after the old National Road (US 40), which parallels I-68 east of exit 14 (Keysers Ridge). I-68 was fully completed in 1991.

The road is promoted by the Maryland State Highway Administration as an alternate to the Pennsylvania Turnpike, with signage on I-70 that informs motorists that I-68 is an alternate route to "Ohio and Points West".

West Virginia
The interstate crosses Preston and Monongalia Counties, in a highly rural route. Just west of the West Virginia/Maryland border, FCI Hazelton can be seen to the north. Between Bruceton Mills and Cheat Lake, the most dramatic mountain on the interstate is crossed, known as Cooper's Rock. This mountain can become impassible in a heavy snow. At the base of the mountain on the west side is the Lakeview Resort.

Maryland
The section through downtown Cumberland, Maryland, is one of the most difficult. It features a long bridge, known as the "crosstown bridge" that completely spans the city. Immediately west of the bridge, the interstate goes through an area known as "Moose Turn" where it makes an abrupt "S" turn to avoid the Potomac River, which flows immediately to the south of the road at that point. For the next several miles, the interstate proceeds over Haystack Mountain, one of the few remaining syncline fold mountains in the Appalachian Chain (suggesting it was once one of the highest). The interstate climbs past Frostburg, Maryland, crosses into Garrett County, enroute to the West Virginia line.

History
340-foot deep cut in the top of Sideling Hill was made to allow the highway to pass through six miles west of Hancock. This exposed a syncline, a trough-shaped fold in the rock of Sideling Hill. An exhibit center was built at the site, and it opened in 1991. This cut is one of the most impressive rock exposures in the northeastern United States.

The Interstate 68 designation was originally applied to US 50 (the John Hanson Highway) from Interstate 95/Capital Beltway to Annapolis, Maryland.

Future
The Mon-Fayette Expressway is a major highway project extending from I-376 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania via Uniontown, Pennsylvania and destined to end at I-68 in West Virginia near the Cheat Lake Interchange (Exit 10). Ground was broken in West Virginia in the 1990s during the tenure of Governor Cecil Underwood. When completed, the WV portion of the highway will be designated as WV 43. The official name of this highway in Pennsylvania is the James J. Manderino Highway.

Interstate 268 has been proposed as a designation for the West Run Expressway, a planned northeast bypass of Morgantown, West Virginia, connecting to I-79 in Pennsylvania.

Ohio and West Virginia have jointly projected the completion of the interstate to Moundsville, West Virginia and on to connect to I-70 in Ohio. This will allow traffic to completely bypass I-70 in Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The two states began this project by building a interstate quality bridge across the Ohio River at Moundsville.