In the 1953 renumbering, Route 8 was renumbered to Route 94, which was extended northeast past Newton along former Route 31 to the New York state line, matching NY 94 across the border. It was initially only marked south of Hamburg, as none of the route north of Hamburg was state-maintained. Originally, Route 94 began at the now razed Delaware Bridge, where US 46 would cross into Pennsylvania. Route 94 would wind right and north-east a few to Columbia, where it joined its current route. In December 1953, both the Portland-Columbia Toll Bridge and Delaware Water Gap Toll Bridge opened. That year a section of Old Mine Road was rebuilt and aligned as a four lane freeway between Columbia and the Delaware Water Gap Toll Bridge.