Work continues on I-70 at Murtland
Work has started on the reconstruction of the westbound lanes of Interstate 70 as part of the project to build a diverging diamond interchange at Murtland Avenue in South Strabane Township.
While motorists on the highway should not expect any planned traffic stoppages, drivers on Route 19 (Washington Road) will encounter restrictions this week, and those using Locust Avenue will see a brief closure one morning next month.
The pavement on the western side of the highway has been removed after traffic was switched over to the eastbound lanes that were rebuilt last year, said Scott Faieta, assistant construction engineer for the state Department of Transportation overseeing the project. Excavation is being done in preparation for the new pavement, and drainage is being installed, he added.
“We will be demolishing the bridge that takes the highway over Route 19,” Faieta said Tuesday. “There will be nighttime lane restrictions on Route 19 from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. for about the next week, with traffic down to one lane in each direction.”
Locust will be closed briefly to all traffic while beams are set in place and secured on the bridge that takes the highway over that road. Faieta expects that to happen in the early morning hours, tentatively set for June 6.
“We are actually expanding that bridge, not demolishing it,” Faieta said. “It will be wider.”
Faieta said state police indicated the traffic flow on the highway has been good so far.
“There is more room in the construction area, particularly for drivers coming from Interstate 79 south to I-70 east, than there was last year, so we haven’t seen the backups to Meadow Lands,” Faieta said. “But that could change once we start seeing more traffic during the summer travel season. The traffic volume picks up around Memorial Day.”
Faieta said there will be no restrictions on the interstate or Route 19 starting the morning of May 27 and continuing through the holiday weekend until the night of May 31. He said the contractor will likely still be working, but it will not affect travel.
The current traffic pattern on the highway will continue until November. Faieta said PennDOT has paid the contractor, Golden Triangle Construction of Imperial, $30.3 million, or about 60 percent of the $51.2 project cost. Work on the project began in the fall 2014 and is to be done in November 2017.