Nov 4, 2015 3 min read

Drivers who travel Interstate 70 and Route 19 near the Murtland Avenue interchange in South Strabane Township can expect to see barriers and orange barrels come down as work on the project to construct a diverging diamond interchange wraps up for the season later this month.

Work on the $51 million project began in September 2014.

Golden Triangle Construction of Imperial is the general contractor.

During the week of Nov. 16, drivers will start to see changes, said Scott Faieta, assistant construction engineer for the state Department of Transportation.

“We are wrapping up some work, filling in some gaps in preparation for the switchover,” Faieta said Wednesday. “We will start the work to open up I-70 eastbound on Monday. There will still be two lanes of traffic during the day but there will be single lane restrictions from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. each night.”

Faieta said drivers should expect backlogs on Interstate 79 southbound to I-70 eastbound during the switchover.

“Work on Route 19 will start Tuesday to prepare for the switch there,” he said. “”On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, work will be done to remove the barriers on both the eastbound and westbound lanes of I-70. We hope everything will be switched back by Nov. 21, but it depends on the weather.”

Eric Klimas, project manager for Golden Triangle, said the milestone for completion of the work is Nov. 23 or the company will pay damages for not meeting the deadline.

“If need be, we will work the weekend before Thanksgiving,” Klimas said. “It is in our best interest to get it done.”

Faieta said that PennDOT has paid almost $25 million on the project.

“I think the project went well,” Faieta said. “The biggest problem was oversize loads coming through and causing damage and traffic queues because the drivers did not follow their permitted route.”

South Strabane police Chief Don Zofchak also thought the project went well.

“There were a few bumps in the road, but things went fairly smoothly,” Zofchak said. “The backups on the highway from Interstate 79 south to Interstate 70 east, especially on Friday afternoons, did create problems on local roads as drivers got off the highway to avoid traffic.”

Faieta said work will done on the westbound lanes of the highway next year and some additional work will be completed on Route 19. He expects construction to resume in April 2016. Some work will be done over the winter on the bridge that takes the highway over Locust Avenue as well as removal of crossovers and environmental work. The project is scheduled to be done in November 2017.