Blasting due on I-80 Centre County project next week
MARION TOWNSHIP, CENTRE COUNTY, PA – As work continues, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is providing an early May update for its local interchange/Route 26 (Jacksonville Road) project in Centre County.
The work zone is located along I-80 east of the Bellefonte/161 interchange and can affect traffic flow on Interstate 80 and Route 26.
Motorists should anticipate the following the week of May 9 on Interstate 80 eastbound.
Drivers should expect delays due to rolling slow-downs while the contractor conducts blasting operations on Monday and Tuesday, May 9 and 10.
Overnight Monday, May 9, through Thursday, May 12, a right (travel) lane closure on I-80 eastbound will shift all traffic onto the crossover lane. Overnight hours are 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.
During daylight hours, I-80 eastbound is in a long-term configuration that sees traffic in the left lane using the crossover to I-80 westbound. Traffic in the travel lane remains on I-80 eastbound and will be shifted onto the shoulder while passing through the work zone. When exiting the work zone, traffic on the shoulder will shift back into the travel lane and traffic from the crossover will rejoin I-80 eastbound in the left lane.
Motorists should anticipate the following the week of May 9 on Interstate 80 westbound.
Drivers should expect delays due to rolling slow-downs while the contractor conducts blasting operations on Monday and Tuesday, May 9 and 10.
I-80 westbound is now in its long-term configuration for the summer with two lanes shifted to the right. The right lane rides on the outside shoulder and the left lane rides on what was the travel lane.
On Route 26, flaggers will be in the roadway to enforce an alternating traffic pattern as drainage work continues. Lane restrictions will be lifted by the end of the day each day.
Work this season includes three miles of reconstruction on I-80 eastbound, completion of new ramps and connector road, completion of bridge structure, and reconstruction and improvements on a section of Route 26.
The I-80/Route 26 local interchange project is east of Bellefonte and is part of a long-awaited safety-improvement in Centre County. HRI, Inc. of State College is the contractor on this $52 million project. Up-to-date information is available on the project page at
www.penndot.pa.gov/jacksonvilleroad.
The local interchange project is the first phase of a three-phase project to build local access, a high-speed interchange connection between I-99 and I-80 and make improvements on the Jacksonville Road. In July 2018, the project was awarded an initial $35 million federal Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant. Completing all three phases will support the regional freight economy and improve the reliability of roadway travel throughout the region.
