Aug 17, 2005 By Amy Karpinsky 3 min read

While the superintendent of SCI-Fayette acknowledged that road improvements have occurred near the Luzerne Township institution, Harry E. Wilson said the main problem now is the reduced hours of the Fredericktown Ferry. Wilson told the Fayette County Transportation Alliance Tuesday that a significant number of the 700 employees at the institution use the ferry and it has become an employee recruitment issue. “We’ve had staff leave because of it,” he said. He said a July 2004 study had the number of operators at 3 1/2, but noted that there are only two operators now, and that has caused fewer operating hours. He said the prison is a seven-day-a-week operation, in which three shifts are run.

Acknowledging that this is an issue that must be dealt with, Fayette County Commissioner Vincent A. Vicites said the county is prepared to hire two trainees soon, possibly this month. He said the interviews have been conducted.

The ferry, which first became operational before 1900, travels 800 feet between Washington and Fayette counties across the Monongahela River. The closest bridge is miles away and a planned new bridge as a part of the Mon/Fayette Expressway is years away.

Deputy superintendent Mark Krysevic joked that he would like a bridge, “possibly a drawbridge” because 30 miles of Fayette County are inaccessible and landlocked. He said prison employees who live in Fayette County go through Greene County and across the ferry because it is quicker.

Wilson said more than one-third of the 700 employees at the prison are from Fayette County and he can’t see that figure going anywhere but up as people retire.

Krysevic added that there are 1,900 inmates at the prison and they are getting a substantial number of visitors. He said the visitors come, stay in Uniontown and spend money in the county.

Jim Marzullo, a member of the Fayette Expressway Completion Organization (FAECO), told Krysevic that the Department of Corrections should get on board to push for completion of the Uniontown-to-Brownsville link of the Mon/Fayette Expressway, including construction of a new bridge over the Monongahela River.

Vicites said the ferry is a short-term solution, but the new bridge is a long-term solution. “The ferry won’t last long term. It’s wearing out,” Vicites said.

Krysevic said the ferry “breaks every other day,” but remains critical for the prison. Donna Holdorf encouraged Wilson and Krysevic to submit testimony regarding the importance of the ferry to the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission for inclusion on the upcoming four-year Transportation Improvement Project.

Also during the meeting, the alliance discussed what projects should be priorities for the upcoming TIP. A public hearing to receive testimony is being held today at 5:30 p.m. at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus in its Swimmer Auditorium.

Tammy Shell, co-chair of the alliance, said new regulations in developing the TIP stipulate that it must be balanced. Shell said the county will receive $15 million per year and any projects that don’t have designated funding could not be defended.

Shell said in the past the idea was to submit as many projects as possible, but now more “realistic numbers” are needed. She said the current TIP includes $25 million more in projects than the sum available.

In discussions about what projects are important, the alliance agreed that Route 21 from Route 40 to the Greene County line, including a new Masontown Bridge, is a top priority. Other high priority projects they listed include Route 40 at Chalk Hill, Memorial Bridge on Route 119, Matthew Drive extension and Evans Manor Bridge.