Lititz Pike Detours Set To Begin May 29

750 mm by 600 mm (30 in by 24 in) Pennsylvania shield, made to the specifications of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), 2003 Edition (sign M1-5). Uses the Roadgeek 2005 fonts. (United States law does not permit the copyrighting of typeface designs, and the fonts are meant to be copies of a U.S. Government-produced work anyway.) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Lititz Pike motorists will soon be forced to learn some new tricks.

On Wednesday, May 29, PennDOT is implementing the first set of road closings and altered traffic patterns necessitated by construction of a new Route 501 bridge over the Amtrak and Norfolk Southern train tracks.

That means drivers who have been using Route 222/501 for years to enter and exit the city will encounter some major changes in their routine.

McGovern Avenue will be closed from the Lititz Pike to Queen Street.  Consequently, southbound drivers unable to make the right turn onto McGovern Avenue will continue straight, to a new intersection at Liberty Street.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/850759_Lititz-Pike-detours-set-to-begin-May-29.html#ixzz2TfDre4N0

Interstate 81 Should Reopen In Harrisburg By Tuesday Morning, PennDOT Officials Say

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Dauphin County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Under ideal circumstances, transportation officials hope to reopen all lanes of Interstate 81 underneath the ramp damaged by last week’s tanker fire by early Tuesday morning.

“Our goal will be [to reopen I-81] for the Tuesday morning rush,” said Mike Keiser, the area district executive for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation during a news conference Sunday at the scene of the fire on I-81, near Exit 67.

“I-81 should be back to full lanes in all directions by Tuesday,” he said.

Keiser also announced the completion of crossover lanes splitting the two westbound lanes of Route 22 into a single eastbound and a single westbound lane.  Access to Harrisburg via the crossover should be available after 4 p.m. Sunday, Keiser said.

Read more:  http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/05/interstate_81_should_be_open_i.html#incart_river_default

Area Truckers Not Troubled By I-81/Route 322 Shutdown After Tanker Fire

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Dauphin County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Just like Harrisburg area commuters, the local trucking industry is being inconvenienced by the shutdown of I-81 and Route 322, but it hasn’t been hamstrung by the subsequent delays.

Trucking executives say they’ve been able to comfortably plot new routes for their fleets of 18-wheelers around the area affected by Thursday’s explosive truck accident, and haven’t experienced anything more than a couple hours delay.

“It somewhat limits our ability to conduct business as usual,” said Jim Germak, president of Jagtrux in Marietta. “The gridlock in Harrisburg is something we have to deal with just like everybody else.  But it’s not a total panic.”

Germak, who oversees a fleet of 40 trucks that transport materials for a range of customers such as Armstrong ceiling tile in Lancaster, said his drivers suffer from the shutdown most during the day, and particularly during the morning and evening rush hours when traffic jams can extend truck trips up to two hours.

Read more:  http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/05/area_truckers_not_troubled_by.html#incart_m-rpt-1

Letter May Signal Movement On Keim Street Bridge Project

Editor’s note:  Replacing this bridge won’t happen soon enough!

POTTSTOWN — After being closed to traffic for nearly three years, the Keim Street Bridge project is seeing signs of life.

A letter sent to the borough council invites it to choose a volunteer to participate on a committee that will look at the historical significance of the area surrounding the Keim Street Bridge.

The letter was sent Lansdale based CHRS Inc., a company that specializes in making sure building projects comply with state and federal laws on behalf of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

For residents and businesses on both sides of the bridge looking for an end to the waiting period, some movement on the project could finally begin.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130511/NEWS01/130519888/letter-may-signal-movement-on-keim-street-bridge-project#full_story

Road Repairs Could Take At Least Two Months After Tanker Fire On Interstate 81

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Dauphin County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Damage from a fuel tanker explosion near the interchange of Interstate 81 and Route 22/322 will cost tens of millions and shut down a small section of road for two months or more, state officials said Thursday afternoon.

Earlier Thursday morning, a fuel tanker exploded and rolled over on the highway, causing what Gov. Tom Corbett believes is the worst damage to a Pennsylvania highway since a tire fire off I-95 near Philadelphia in 1996.

Both directions of I-81 from Route 581 in Cumberland County to I-81/83 split in Dauphin County are closed.  Officials said they expect it to reopen in time for the Monday morning commute.

The ramp from northbound I-81 to westbound Route 22/322 remains closed.  Eastbound Route 22 through the interchange toward the City of Harrisburg remains closed.

Read more and see pictures:   http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/05/harrisburg_bridges_shut_throug.html#incart_m-rpt-1

Pains To Bring Gains: Berks Road Project Soon To End

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When George Zeppos opened his restaurant, The Hitching Post, on Route 183 in Bern Township two years ago, there was a perpetual traffic jam between the bulk of Berks County‘s population and his dining room.

The interchange with Route 222 a little more than a half-mile south of the restaurant had been prone to backups for years.  But the usual turmoil was aggravated by construction on a new overpass and highway ramps.

PennDOT expects to be finished with the project by the end of this month, a big relief to the thousands of drivers who have sat in backups on Routes 183 and 222 since it started in April 2010.

Zeppos said business has been good despite the construction, but he’s bracing for growth when it’s over.  Crews did a great job moving traffic through, he said, but perception is tough to fight.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=475337

Studies On 2 Berks Highways To Shape Work Plans

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Studies to find out what it would take to make two of Berks County’s most-congested highways a quicker go are now underway.

PennDOT consultants are examining the seven-mile stretch of Route 222 between the Kutztown Bypass in Maxatawny Township and the Trexlertown Bypass in Lehigh County to see how much it would cost to widen it to four lanes.

At the same time, another team is looking at the West Shore Bypass between Wyomissing and Exeter Township to determine what changes could improve traffic flow.

Both studies were discussed Thursday during a meeting of the Reading Area Transportation Study, the panel that plans how state and federal transportation funds are spent in Berks.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=474858

For Sale: Bridges, In As-Is Condition

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If you believe one road’s trash can be another’s treasure, PennDOT has a bridge to sell you.

It’s on Christman Road, connecting Greenwich and Richmond townships over the Saucony Creek.

The 117-year-old span, known as Hummel’s Bridge, was a pioneer in its time.  It had pony truss construction that ushered in an era of similar bridges.

PennDOT and the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission consider it “historically and technologically significant.”

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=471598

Hazleton Area Rail-Trail Bridge To Get Historic Support

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A 117-foot bridge that will take the Greater Hazleton rail-trail over an active Norfolk Southern railroad line will be held by supports built more than 120 years ago by the Coxe coal barons.

The bridge will be delivered to the site on May 23.

Tom Ogorzalek, a trail volunteer and local history buff, said the abutments were built by the Coxe family when they owned and operated a railroad near the turn of the last century.

“They were built in 1890 by the Delaware, Schuylkill and Susquehanna (DS&S) Railroad, which was run by the Coxe family to haul their coal,” Ogorzalek said. “Other railroads also hauled their coal.  They made a deal with Lehigh Valley Railroad to haul all of their coal.  Lehigh Valley acquired DS&S, and almost immediately abandoned that track sometime between 1900 and 1905.”

Read more:  http://standardspeaker.com/news/rail-trail-bridge-to-get-historic-support-1.1476971

Pennsylvania Senate Highways Plan Would Raise Gas Prices

Editor’s note:  Really!  Because gas prices aren’t high enough already???

HARRISBURG – Spending on Pennsylvania’s highways, bridges and mass transit systems would get a big shot of new funding under a Senate plan unveiled Tuesday that would raise the money by increasing motorist fees and wholesale gas taxes – bumping prices at the pump as much a quarter a gallon.

The $2.5 billion plan by Senate Transportation Committee Chairman John Rafferty, R-Montgomery, is more ambitious and expensive than the proposal Gov. Tom Corbett advanced in January. The increase is nearly 50 percent of the $5.3 billion that the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation currently spends on highways, bridges and transit.

Rafferty warned that the state’s bridges and highways are in dire need of repair, and contended that the plan would simply update taxes and fees to reflect inflation after going unchanged since at least the 1990s while giving the state’s economy a big boost.

“This is a sustainable funding plan,” Rafferty told reporters at a news conference where he was backed by dozens of supportive lawmakers and representatives of transportation-minded groups. “This is not a one-shot deal. This is a significant piece of change that will move Pennsylvania forward.”

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=470435

Number Of Those Killed In Pennsylvania Crashes Rose In 2012

Map of Pennsylvania (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Statewide, the number of people killed in crashes has increased from 2011 but is the third lowest on record, the state Department of Transportation said Monday.

A press release issued by the department said that 1,310 people died in crashes in the state, an increase of 24 people from 2011.

The lowest recorded number of fatalities was 1,256 in 2009, PennDOT said.

Locally, the number of people killed on state roads has also increased.

Read more:  http://republicanherald.com/news/number-of-those-killed-in-crashes-rose-in-2012-1.1469376

$63.3M Project Will Expand Route 202 To Six Lanes

Southbound U.S. Route 202 past the interchange with U.S. Route 422 in Tredyffrin Township, Pennsylvania (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

EAST WHITELAND — A $63.3 million project to expand 2.6 miles of U.S. Route 202 to six lanes to improve travel and reduce congestion will begin Monday night, April 1.

The project is the final one in the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s program to expand 6.2 miles of Route 202 to six lanes from just south of the Chesterbrook Interchange in Tredyffrin Township to the Route 30 Interchange.

“The start of this second Main Line contract is another positive step forward in our plan to transform Route 202 into a modern highway capable of moving travelers smoothly and safely through the Great Valley area of Chester County,” PennDOT District Executive Lester C. Toaso said.

Allan A. Myers LP, of Worcester, was chosen as the project contractor and will reconstruct and widen Route 202 from four lanes to six between the Route 401 and Route 30 interchanges. This project is scheduled to finish in May 2016.

Read more:   http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130326/NEWS01/130329515/-63-3m-project-will-expand-route-202-to-six-lanes#full_story

Pennsylvania Transportation Performance Report 2013

Here’s basically what the report is about:

“On behalf of our “Board of Directors,” the Pennsylvania State Transportation Commission (STC), please
accept this first edition of the Transportation Performance Report.  It provides a snapshot of the transportation system’s current status, performance within current resources, and potential for progress as
we move forward.  The report showcases various data and trends.  It also includes actions taken thus far
in response to the Transportation Funding Advisory Commission Report, presented to Governor Corbett
in August 2011.”

The report is very interesting and will give you a good idea of what’s going on in our state.  This will take a minute or so to download as it is a large file, but the format is nice and it’s an easy read with graphs and pictures to help illustrate what is being said.

Click here:  ftp://ftp.dot.state.pa.us/public/Bureaus/Cpdm/STC/TPR%20FINAL%202-7-13.pdf

Teeth Will Grind As Drivers Detour For Lititz Pike Bridge Work

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lancaster County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The good news is that PennDOT plans to keep the Lititz Pike bridge near the train station open while a new one is constructed next to it.

The bad news is that the road closures and detours necessary to complete the project will force drivers to make some difficult decisions in the year ahead to avoid snarled traffic.

The $12.7 million project involves constructing a bridge that will funnel Lititz Pike traffic directly onto Duke Street in the city.

The project is already under way, with the demolition of the Fulton Bank on Duke Street and the former Crouse used car lot across from the Stockyard Inn.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/818634_Teeth-will-grind-as-drivers-detour-for-Lititz-Pike-bridge-work.html#ixzz2LvQxR1l9

Amtrak’s Regulars Treasure The Pennsylvanian

English: An locomotive arriving at the Johnstown train station in Johnstown, . The train is Amtrak’s #42 Pennsylvanian. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

ABOARD THE AMTRAK PENNSYLVANIAN — The steady rumble of steel wheels on tracks is punctuated by the wail of a locomotive horn and then, oddly, by the pop of a champagne cork.

It’s 8:30 a.m., and Amanda McCoy and Kim Christen are living it up in the cafe car. On the table are boxes of a Polish pastry called paczki, orange juice and a bottle of Barefoot Bubbly.

It’s mimosa time.

Ms. McCoy, of Indiana Township, and Ms. Christen, of West View, also have bread, garlic bologna, lettuce, tomato and a travel Scrabble set for the long ride. “We’re veterans,” Ms. McCoy says. “We know how to do it.”

Like many others aboard the train, they swear by it, and recoil at the possibility that the one daily Amtrak train serving Pittsburgh and Harrisburg will be eliminated in October.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/state/amtraks-regulars-treasure-the-pennsylvanian-675749/#ixzz2LDMwXNd9

Route 222 Plans Accelerating

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s the snippet of Berks County where time appears to stop, and progress means inching forward in a line of brake lights that doesn’t seem to end.

Drivers and public officials in Berks have complained for years that the northern part of Route 222 – particularly the 7-mile stretch between the so-called Road to Nowhere expressway in Ontelaunee Township and the start of the Kutztown bypass in Richmond Township – is a commuting nightmare.  It’s also a safety hazard and a roadblock to economic growth.

But that could all change if Pennsylvania’s coffers for road projects get a little fill-up, PennDOT says.

The agency has committed to making Route 222 a four-lane highway from Reading to Kutztown if legislators adopt Gov. Tom Corbett’s plan to boost transportation funds through increases in wholesale gasoline taxes and structural changes to PennDOT.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=452737

Smoother Berks Roads Ahead?

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Berks County would enjoy smoother roads and sturdier bridges if the $1.8 billion annual boost to statewide transportation funds Gov. Tom Corbett pitched last week becomes reality, local officials said.

At a minimum, the funds would stop the backlog of bridge and highway repairs needed in Berks from growing, said Alan D. Piper, county transportation planner.

But over time, PennDOT could catch up on repairs and focus on expanding traffic-prone highways such as Route 222 and the West Shore Bypass, he said.

“There’s no doubt that it will be beneficial,” Piper said. “Does it solve all our problems? Probably not. But it’s a gigantic step in the right direction.”

Read more:   http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=451840

PennDOT Efficiency Drive Could Free Up Funds For Roadwork

Editor’s note:  Who ever thought we would see PennDOT and efficiency in the same sentence!

Extra taxes and fees aren’t the only tricks PennDOT has up its sleeves to round up more money for road projects.

The agency’s also turning to some less obvious solutions to its funding woes, such as mail-sorting machines and more durable highway paint.

PennDOT’s put together a list of technology investments, policy changes and other tweaks it thinks could save the state $50 million to $75 million a year and, in some cases, make the agency a little more pleasant to deal with.

The anticipated savings are a drop in the bucket compared with the $3.5 billion gap between available funding and the state’s transportation needs.  But it’s something.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=446586

PennDOT Unveils Upgrade To Interstate 78

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A major section of Interstate 78 in northern Berks County will be upgraded under a PennDOT plan unveiled Thursday night at a public meeting in Greenwich Elementary School.

The Krumsville Interchange Project, a $140 million initiative, is aimed at increasing safety on an 8-mile section of the interstate from Lenhartsville east to the Berks-Lehigh county line, officials said.

Ronald J. Young Jr., PennDOT spokesman, said construction is scheduled to begin in 2015 and last about three years.

“It’s designed to improve safety and emergency access,” Young said. “Fatalities on this section are 40 percent higher than average, and the crash rate is 71 percent higher.”

Read more:

http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=444438

Cumru Township Stretch Of Route 724 To Reopen Friday

750 mm by 600 mm (30 in by 24 in) Pennsylvania shield, made to the specifications of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), 2003 Edition (sign M1-5). Uses the Roadgeek 2005 fonts. (United States law does not permit the copyrighting of typeface designs, and the fonts are meant to be copies of a U.S. Government-produced work anyway.) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Thousands of daily commuters who were used to traveling on Route 724 in Cumru Township are getting an early Christmas present.

The 1.5-mile stretch between Route 10 and Interstate 176 is set to reopen Friday afternoon.  It has been closed since August so the Reading Area Water Authority could install a water main.

“The paving’s pretty much done and everything’s been tested,” said Alan Wong, construction manager.

Crews are adding finishing touches, like line painting, and PennDOT needs to inspect the stretch, he said.  Another layer of asphalt will be added in spring, but that won’t delay the reopening.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/Article.aspx?id=437832