The main highway in the borough, Pennsylvania Route 309, connects Tamaqua with Allentown and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the south and Hazleton and Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania in the north, continuing past there as Route 29 to the New York State line. Route 309 serves as a truck bypass for Interstate 476, since many placarded trucks are not allowed in the Lehigh Tunnel, as well as a route of choice for access to the operating coal mines and industrial parks in the region. A second important highway in the borough is U.S. Route 209 that runs along the Panther Creek and intersects with PA-309 in the borough. Route 209 runs for approximately 212 miles from Millersburg, Pennsylvania in Dauphin County to the town of Ulster in Ulster County, New York. U.S. 209 also connects Tamaqua to many nearby municipalities, including the Schuylkill County seat at Pottsville in the west and both Jim Thorpe and Lehighton to the east.