Upgrades on Route 119 in Youngwood, I-70 lead PennDOT's Westmoreland construction projects

PennDOT is wrapping up work on one Interstate 70 improvement project in Westmoreland County while work continues to upgrade an adjacent stretch of the interstate and Route 119 in Youngwood.

In addition to those summer construction efforts, prep work could begin this year for the first phase of the Laurel Valley Transportation Improvement Project, along the Route 981 corridor between Mt. Pleasant and Norvelt.

Those major PennDOT projects are among 26 underway or set to begin this construction season in the county.

“(Pennsylvania’s) southwest region has several major projects starting or wrapping up this year,” said PennDOT District 12 Executive William Kovach. “Several of those projects are located on Interstate 70. Upgrading I-70 in Washington and Westmoreland counties provides major improvements to our transportation system.”

Contractor Golden Triangle’s work on the I-70 and Route 31 interchange in South Huntingdon is substantially complete, according to PennDOT Assistant District Executive Bill Beaumariage. “All they’re doing now is just some cleanup work.”

The $66.8 million project involved lengthening entrance and exit ramps and re-configuring them into a diamond design. A bridge on I-70 and another on Smithton Pike were replaced. Smithton Pike and Davis Road were relocated to accommodate widening of the interstate.

Directly to the east, the Trumbull Corporation is working on a $92.8 million project to reconstruct the Yukon and Madison interchanges on I-70 and to connect with previous improvements on the interstate at New Stanton.

Work includes widening a nearly 4-mile stretch of I-70, involving replacement of four bridges and creation of a new eastbound auxiliary lane between the two interchanges.

According to Beaumariage, reconstruction of I-70 westbound is underway for that project, with traffic expected to shift onto the newly paved portion of those lanes in mid-August. As construction continues, PennDOT expects to continue paving of the westbound lanes and begin work on the eastbound lanes.

Three new ramps were completed at the Yukon exit, and two new roundabouts are finished at the Madison exit, Beaumariage said. Beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday and continuing through Aug. 19, the westbound on- and off-ramps at Madison are slated to close for reconstruction, with traffic rerouted through the Yukon exit.

The project is expected to wrap up by September 2022.

“When that’s done, everything on I-70 from the Smithton High Level Bridge to New Stanton will be reconstructed,” Beaumariage said.

Further west on the interstate, planners are designing improvements for the Route 51 and Arnold City interchanges, while construction is underway between Centerville and Speers, in Washington County.

Golden Triangle is expected to continue working through Sept. 2023 on reconstruction of Route 119 in Youngwood and adjacent areas of Hempfield and New Stanton.

Over the next few weeks, Beaumariage said, the contractor is expected to finish work on the southern section of the project, between the New Stanton Borough line and Hillis Street in Youngwood, where the northbound and southbound lanes split.

Drainage work began further north, in the right northbound lane, which will remain closed for reconstruction through November. “We’ll start on the left northbound lane next spring,” Beaumariage said. “In the remainder of 2022 and in 2023, we will work on the southbound lanes.”

The reconstructed lanes will include “chicanes,” slight curves in the roadway that will force traffic from right to left and are meant to slow down motorists. Adjacent sidewalks also will be updated, incorporating manholes that have contributed to a rough ride in the travel lanes.

“We want to get those manholes out of the street and into the new sidewalk area,” Beaumariage said.

In advance of Golden Triangle crews, utility companies will be continuing work to relocate their lines that are under the street, he noted.

The $24.1 million project in Youngwood is expected to conclude by December 2023.

PennDOT expects by the end of July to let a contract for the first phase of the Laurel Valley project, which will improve a 4.5-mile segment of Route 981, from Route 819 north to the Mt. Pleasant Township village of Norvelt. The project includes some shifts in alignment to the west and construction of three roundabouts at key intersections.

Before the year is out, the selected contractor might begin some initial work, removing vegetation from the construction zone, Beaumariage said.

In another local PennDOT project, totaling more than $3 million, work is wrapping up on upgrading traffic signals and sidewalks at nine intersections in downtown Latrobe.

Work in Allegheny Township includes $15.9 million worth of improvements on Route 356, between White Cloud Road and Route 56. That includes realignment of several intersections, paving, stormwater maintenance and replacement of four culvert boxes.

That work, PennDOT announced, will require closing a portion of Route 356 beginning July 19 and continuing for 45 days, forcing about 10,000 vehicles per day to use a three-mile detour route.