Dear KTFC Members & Friends:
PennDOT was prompted to close a six-mile stretch of eastbound I-84 this week when a hole was discovered in the decking of the bridge spanning Shiny Mountain Road in Pike County, near Promised Land State Park.
A detour was set up along Route 507 to Route 390, and back to Interstate 84, and there was considerable traffic congestion as construction crews worked to repair the bridge.
The events serve as a reminder that, despite the passage of Act 89 of 2013, we still have a long way to go in bringing our highway infrastructure up to an acceptable level. It also reminds us that the condition of our infrastructure is a statewide issue, affecting urban, suburban and rural areas alike.
And finally, as PennDOT’s construction lettings begin to shrink due to declining fuel tax revenue and increasing maintenance costs, it points to the need for vigilance in our advocacy for adequate transportation funding, and ensuring that fuel taxes and license and registration fees are used for their intended purpose, and not diverted for nonhighway items.
Be of Good Cheer,
— The Wolff
TRANSPORTATION ISSUE UPDATE
- WNEP News chronicled the events surrounding the discovery of the deterioration of an Interstate bridge in Pike County Tuesday night.
- The Trump administration has asked states to turn over certain driver’s license data to the U.S. Census Bureau, prompting PennDOT to seek details on the type of data the federal government wants.
- An engineering firm hired by the City of Harrisburg suggests that PennDOT’s I-83 expansion plan through the city could be reduced from 12 to 10 lanes.
- Philadelphia International Airport has received grants totaling nearly $1 million to make platform improvements at SEPTA’s airport regional rail lines.