Walnut Hill Road interchange work begins
A $6.7 million project to complete the Walnut Hill Road interchange along Route 119 has commenced, though most of the work will not begin until the spring. Crews from Joseph B. Fay Co. of Tarentum are working to resurface the portion of Walnut Hill Road that travels over Route 119. One side of the roadway will be closed at a time while the lanes are paved, according to PennDOT project manager Bill Beaumariage.
Beaumariage said work should begin in September for the interchange, but the bulk of construction is not expected to get under way until next year.
“We may get some work started near where the interchange will meet Route 43 and we’ll be able to do some bridge work, but we won’t be able to do construction until the weather breaks next year,” he said.
Plans call for ramps to be built across Walnut Hill Road from the two ramps already in place, with traffic signals at each intersection to control traffic. A third signal will be installed near where a new Shop ‘n Save supermarket is under construction.
Beaumariage said the traffic lights will provide an opportunity for residents who live near the construction site to have access to Walnut Hill Road.
For traffic traveling south on Route 119/43, there will be three lanes, including a middle “decision lane,” Beaumariage said. Vehicles traveling in the left lane will travel to Hopwood and those in the right lane will go to Route 43.
When entering the road to the north from Hopwood, vehicles will enter the left lane, which will leave the right lane open for vehicles entering from Route 43. The road will then change into three lanes, with a center decision lane.
At a meeting earlier this year, Beaumariage said the daily traffic count on Route 119 in the Walnut Hill Road vicinity is 29,500 vehicles, while the daily traffic count on Walnut Hill Road is 8,800 vehicles. Those numbers are projected to rise to 47,800 and 17,000, respectively, by 2030.
Robert Schiffbauer, South Union Township supervisor, said the supervisors lobbied and tried to acquire funding to complete the Walnut Hill ramps when the final leg of the Uniontown bypass was constructed, but the project was put on the backburner.
Schiffbauer said too many stipulations were placed on a development at that time.
“It’s been a long wait,” he said.
Beaumariage agreed, saying the project has faced some obstacles over the years, but is finally becoming a reality.
“It’s been a lengthy process and we’ve pushed hard and fought to keep this on track,” he said.
“We’ve had a lot of cooperation from the township and the county to help bring this project to fruition.”
Beaumariage said the Walnut Hill Road lane restrictions will go into effect in a few weeks.
The interchange project should be complete sometime next fall, he said.
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Editor’s Note: Staff Writer Angie Santello contributed to this report.