One person was taken to a hospital after a tri-axle truck crashed early Tuesday on Route 66 near Poke Run Church Road in Washington Township.
Police Chief Jason Montgomery said it was a single-vehicle accident. The driver was alert and conscious, Montgomery said.
The cause is under investigation.
“It looks like he was trying to slow down for traffic, and he went up over the hill,” Montgomery said.
Long skid marks were seen leading up to the crash site, where crews from at least five fire departments worked to control traffic and clear debris.
Washington Township Volunteer Fire Company was assisted by White Valley, Sardis, Upper Burrell and Saltsburg.
It is the second time in as many weeks a crash shut down traffic along that stretch. On Halloween, a tanker collided head-on with an SUV, killing 48-year-old Christopher J. Negley, 48, of Washington Township. Negley was alone in the SUV. The driver of the tanker was not injured.
That crash happened just south of where the highway diverges from Route 356 near the former state police station.
Negley’s SUV was traveling south on Route 66 and went into the northbound lane, where it collided with the tractor-trailer.
The crash sites are about 2 miles apart.
Neighbors said there have been a number of crashes in the area, usually at the nearby intersection of Route 66 with Sportsman Drive and Pine Run Church Road.
On Tuesday, police said it is fortunate no other vehicles were involved.
Route 66 was closed for about two hours between Poke Run Church Road and Fox Road.
It reopened about 1 p.m., according to Westmoreland County dispatch.
