DISTANCE FROM PITTSBURGH   Many people think Philadelphia must be closest, because it's in the same state.  But no, it's the farthest away! City Miles Cleveland 135 Buffalo 216 Washington 252 Detroit 288 Cincinnati 290 Philadelphia 308 Don't forget, while Philadelphia's port welcomes ships from the Atlantic Ocean, Pittsburgh welcomes barges on the Ohio River.  It's practically in the Midwest. The University of Pittsburgh’s Christopher Briem writes that cities of Cleveland and Pittsburgh are so close that they anchor a single region, Cleveburgh.   “Northeast Ohio and southwestern Pennsylvania are far more interconnected with each other than either region is with other parts of Ohio or Pennsylvania.  The day-to-day interaction of local businesses are geared toward regional partners, not Harrisburg or Columbus.  Pittsburgh industries are far more linked to markets and suppliers in Youngstown, Akron and Cleveland than with those in Allentown, Scranton or even Philadelphia.  In so many ways, the state boundaries we think of as important are no more than lines on a map.”