ROBINSON TWP. — PennDOT is working on some major plans for Robinson Township drivers.
They’re looking to revamp the Parkway West/376 Interchange and make the Route 22 bridge longer, taller and divide it into two structures.
The proposed project would be completed in two phases and cost upwards of 26 million dollars.
“I think the best thing anybody can do is just prepare. You know, that’s it,” said Kenya Matthews of Pittsburgh.
PennDOT says the new design would be a “diverging diamond” which is currently used in South Strabane along Interstate 70.
Officials say traffic would merge from the left lanes, helping prevent accidents.
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“It eliminates a lot of cross-traffic turning movements. It kind of switches traffic onto the opposite side,” said Doug Seeley, PennDOT Assistant District Executive for Design.
However, not everyone sees the vision or understands how to navigate it.
“I think that it’s going to create a lot more traffic initially than the alleviation they plan for in the future,” said Matthews.
Seeley says the improvements would make the area safer and cut down on crashes, traffic and overall wait times.
“Congestion is really bad especially during the holidays and certain times of the year,” said Seeley.
PennDOT says there could be full-scale closures for the work in the future.
However, it would only happen on weekend overnights and off-times.
“I’m for anything that they’re going to do to help the traffic around here,” said Cheri Fingeret of McDonald.
If all goes as planned, the project would tentatively start in 2024.
It would take two years to complete.
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