100-mile detour in place when 86-mile stretch of Pennsylvania Turnpike closes overnight Saturday

An 86-mile stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike will be closed starting at 11 p.m. Saturday between the Breezewood (Exit 161) and New Stanton (Exit 75) interchanges to remove a tractor-trailer that crashed earlier this week. The road will reopen by 5 a.m. on Sunday.

Motorists should plan accordingly for a lengthy detour or should avoid the area during this time, PennDOT advises.

The closure is to allow crews to remove a tractor-trailer that crashed Monday night at mile marker 103.5 westbound within a reconstruction project in Somerset County. The tractor-trailer left the roadway, went through the guardrail and traveled down a ditch before striking an embankment. State police said the vehicle sustained disabling damage and troopers later charged the driver with DUI, according to PennDOT.

Motorists exiting at the Breezewood Interchange should follow the suggested detour route:

• Exit at the Breezewood Interchange (Exit 161) and follow U.S. Route 30 west (18.7 miles).
• Follow I-99 north (30.1 miles).
• Follow U.S. Route 22 West (64.5 miles).
• Follow PA Turnpike Route 66 South (13.9 miles).
• Reenter the PA Turnpike (I-76) at the New Stanton Interchange (Exit 75).

Travelers should expect higher than normal traffic volumes on this over-100-mile detour during the closure. Message boards are already in place to inform customers of the closure.

Vehicles will be permitted to enter the Turnpike at the Donegal Interchange (Exit 91) and travel westbound during this closure. All eastbound traffic is permitted in the corridor during the westbound closure, though travelers are advised that traffic will be down to one-lane eastbound beginning at 8 p.m. on July 15 in the vicinity of the recovery site due to unrelated road work.

Information will be posted at the North Midway Service Plaza in Bedford County and the Somerset North Service Plaza in Somerset County. If customers remain in the service plaza after 11 p.m. on July 15, they will be required to stay there until the road reopens.

To report an accident or other emergency on the PA Turnpike, dial *11 via mobile phone. For more information, visit 511pa.com.

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