Work at Murtland continues
Drivers traveling through the construction zone as crews work on the diverging diamond interchange at the Murtland Avenue exit of Interstate 70 in South Strabane Township are starting to see the project take shape.
“The ramp has been paved with concrete from Route 19 north to Interstate 70 east,” said Scott Faieta, assistant construction engineer for the state Department of Transportation. “They are now placing concrete on the ramps to take Interstate 70 west onto Route 19 north.”
Paving on what had been the northbound lanes of Route 19 is now under way and should wrap up next week, said Eric Klimas, project manager for Golden Triangle Construction of Imperial, the general contractor on the project.
Faieta said it looks like northbound traffic will be switched onto the newly paved lanes June 8 while southbound traffic will remain where it is as crews start to work in the middle area of Route 19.
“Northbound traffic getting off on Route 19 to go I-70 east or getting off I-70 west to Route 19 north will use the new ramps,” Faieta said.
“Southbound traffic will use the existing ramps.”
Construction of the middle section of Route 19 is expected to take three or four weeks. When it is done, the southbound traffic will move over to that area.
“That should happen in the middle of July,” Klimas said. “Traffic will remain in that pattern for the remainder of the construction season.”
Faieta said that work is continuing in the median area of I-70. There will be some single lane closures at night. Crews are working six days a week.
Work started last fall on the $54 million project to construct the diverging diamond interchange. Drivers will cross over and switch lanes on Route 19 with traffic signals controlling the flow of traffic. Drivers will have the option of passing through or continuing onto the highway.
Faieta said the work on the project, scheduled to be done in November 2017, is about 22 percent done and about $11 million of the allocated funds hves been paid to the contractor.
“I am very pleased with the work the contractor has done to date,” Faieta said. “It has been a very good project.”