2020 brings area road projects

Several road projects will continue to make headway this year.

Those include the proposed road widening project in Mahoning Township; the Mansion House Hill rock remediation in Jim Thorpe; and the Route 209 and 115 roundabouts in Brodheadsville.

Route 443 road widening

Residents in the Lehighton area need to be prepared for major disruptions in the coming year, as work on Route 443 and 248 is expected.

The project is intended to reduce traffic congestion and crashes, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Ron Young, PennDOT spokesman, said that from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 31, 2018, there were 115 crashes. Of the 115 crashes, he said 57 were rear-end crashes and 35 were angle crashes.

There was one fatality, Young said, adding that rear-end and angle-type crashes are typically associated with traffic congestion and turning movements.

Young said the design engineering team has performed traffic studies, and determined this section of Route 443 is a congested corridor.

“The purpose of the project is to improve roadway facilities to reduce traffic congestion and crashes, and to improve the structural integrity and functionality of the bridges to eliminate deficiencies,” Young said. “These improvements should be capable of effectively handling the expected vehicular needs of the public, emergency services and regional traffic within the surrounding area.”

Young added that this section of 443 has increased traffic volumes due to continued commercial development, resulting in traffic congestion and crashes that led local officials to request improvements.

He said both the 443 and Route 248 projects are likely to be happening concurrently. One lane in each direction on 248 will remain open during the construction.

“The goal will be to keep two lanes of traffic open throughout the project,” he said. “Traffic will be shifted to one half of the road while construction takes place, then moved onto the new section while the other half of the road is constructed. There will be limited times when there is one direction of traffic being controlled by flaggers. Also, they will maintain all driveway access for property owners.”

Bids are expected to be put out next spring, with construction estimated to last three years.

Several borough council members are scheduled to meet Jan. 14 with the state Department of Transportation at it’s Allentown office to further discuss the issue.

Several business owners have said the project will have a“crippling” effect on various properties and businesses located along the strip, and will likely cause them to close or relocate.

Mansion House Hill rock remediation

After a stoppage for the holidays, operations are resuming on the Mansion House Hill rock remediation project on Route 209 in Jim Thorpe.

Young previously said there would not be a complete stoppage of operations over the winter.

Road-Con, of West Chester, has been in charge of the $3.55 million project, which began in the spring. Ameritech Slope Contractors, one of the only companies in the country that handles this type of work, is performing the rock scaling operation.

Seven hundred rock anchors had to be installed, and mesh had to be hung along the wall, said Calvin Ulshafer, who is in charge of the project for PennDOT.

PennDOT officials, at the start of the project, said a number of fracture zones in the rock needed to be checked. All of the fractures were investigated to determine whether or not the rock there needs to come down.

When the rock faults are finished and everything is secured, Ulshafer said, crews can get off the road and work will turn to curbing and gutters in the spring.

PennDOT will monitor winter weather conditions to determine if crews will work that particular day.

The project’s original completion date is listed as May 12.

Route 209/115 roundabouts

A project to put in two roundabouts on Route 209 in Brodheadsville is set to open bids for contractors next July.

In September 2015, PennDOT unveiled plans to build a large roundabout at the intersection of Routes 209 and 115 and a smaller one at the entrance to Pleasant Valley High School. These traffic circles are designed to speed up congested traffic on Route 209, making the road safer and the air cleaner.

PennDOT originally hoped to begin construction in the fall of 2017. But two years later, Brodheadsville residents still don’t see any changes along Route 209.

PennDOT is currently going through the right of way process to buy the necessary land along the road, said PennDOT spokesman Sean Brown.

Brown said he won’t be able to disclose the names of the properties or how many are being affected until PennDOT completes the right of way acquirements.

The Brodheadsville Rite Aid sits in the path of the realignment of Routes 209 and 115 where the larger roundabout will be built.

Rite Aid will move to where John’s Automart is now located at the corner of Route 115 and Marion Lane.

Marble & Granite Fabricators leases a building beside Pleasant Valley Motors at the intersection of Routes 209 and 115. Lidia Lyhauskaya, who co-owns the business with her husband, said that the landlord told her PennDOT will buy about a third of the parking lots.

During construction, access to the business will be blocked, Lyhauskaya said. The business will meet with a Penn­DOT representative to discuss compensation.

The right of way issues must be resolved before the estimated date to open contractor bidding in July, Brown said.

PennDOT will award the contract about a month after the bidding opens, Brown said. After that, the contractor will receive a notice to proceed and can begin construction.

PennDOT previously estimated that construction will take two-and-a-half years, Brown said. The start date and final cost won’t be determined until after the contractor is hired.

The current cost estimate for the project is $18.5 million.