Ohio State Route 8

SR 8, which until now has been heading slightly northeast, turns north and northwest after exit 6, interchanging with Graham Road in the process.

Exits 10, 12, 14A-B and 15 are normally only used as a connection to Hudson or Blossom Music Center and other points in the national park, as their immediate areas are sparsely populated and underdeveloped.

[4] By 1962, it had been extended south to the Central Interchange and numbered Route 8B; it became mainline SR 8 in 1969 north of Market Street, and in its entirety by 1971.

The freeway in that stretch previously had onramps and offramps built closely together, creating the danger of weaving traffic.

An interchange was opened at Seasons Road in 2010 to serve the area near the borders of Cuyahoga Falls, Stow, and Hudson.

[13][14] Although the interchange was completed on January 25, 2010, it was not initially scheduled to open until one month later, on February 26, when an official ribbon-cutting could take place.

Two weeks before the scheduled opening, an editorial in the Akron Beacon Journal lambasted the ribbon-cutting, calling the ceremony a mere "photo op", and questioning why a finished project should sit unused for 31 days.

On February 21, the government of Stow, which had been responsible for holding the ceremony, announced the interchange would open in the morning of the next day without a ribbon-cutting.

[18][19] Long-term plans for the road include a complete replacement of the North Expressway Viaduct between the Perkins Street and Glenwood Avenue exits, which is currently forecast to begin in 2023.

[22] The letter was resubmitted in April 2014 with support from additional local officials, including Akron mayor Don Plusquellic, but no further discussion has taken place on the proposal.

Southern terminus of SR 8 (with new exit signage)
The SR 8B freeway, as it appeared on the 1964 Ohio highway map.