Markle Road slide area in Allegheny Township remains hazardous, one-lane

Next week PennDOT plans to install a lane barrier along a part of the two-lane Markle Road in Allegheny Township.

But a permanent fix is nowhere in sight.

It’s been more than a month since the Jan. 3 landslide closed one lane between Park and Pine Run roads.

At some point, PennDOT will repair the slide and restore the lane, but it won’t happen any time soon.

The department is dealing with 250 landslide areas in the four-county PennDOT maintenance district that includes Markle Road. There’s only one landslide along Markle Road, so it will be down on the priority list of repairs, according to Valerie Petersen, PennDOT spokeswoman.

“Due to the considerable number of slides that have occurred related to saturated soil conditions, this slide will be monitored, evaluated, prioritized and scheduled for repairs,” she said Friday. The barrier is scheduled to be installed next week.”

Orange triangular warning signs will continue t0 alert drivers 1,000-feet before the slide area in both directions.

Temporary stop signs with flashing lights have been installed at the start of the slide area and one-lane traffic in the other lane.

Drivers are proceeding on a first-come, first-served basis.

Due to the considerable number of slides that have occurred related to saturated soil conditions, this slide will be monitored, evaluated, prioritized and scheduled for repairs. Barrier is scheduled to be installed next week.