Work continues on expressway in Brownsville
Bridge construction over the Monongahela River continues. Completion of the bridge, part of the Mon/Fayette Expressway, is scheduled to be completed by spring.
Vehicles travel south on a repaved section of the Mon/Fayette Expressway near the Elco exit recently.
?A portion of the Mon/Fayette Expressway near California in Washington County is getting an upgrade as work continues on the Uniontown-to-Brownsville portion of the toll road.
Mike Houser, project engineer of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, said the $7.4 million highway project includes resurfacing, paving and overlay of all ramps of Routes 40 and the expressway in the area. It also includes paving on the mainline toll road and paving of the interchanges at California, Elco and New Eagle.
The project is being done by Golden Eagle Construction Co. Inc. of Uniontown.
Houser said the idea was to have the road ready when the rest of the Mon/Fayette Expressway opens.
The second phase of the Uniontown-to-Brownsville link is moving along, with the majority of the sections nearly completed, although the entire link will not be open until next year.
The last, most-expensive piece is the bridge spanning the Monongahela River, which is expected to be finished in the spring.
While the Turnpike Commission had discussed opening some of the completed sections before the bridge is done, that will not occur.
Although the Turnpike Commission could open another four miles, few likely would use it.
鈥淭he lack of use is outweighed by the cost of maintaining it in the winter,鈥� Houser said.
The road could be opened from Redstone Way in Redstone Township to Bull Run Road/Telegraph Road in Luzerne Township, but will not.
The best course of action was to wait until it can all be opened at once, Houser said.
鈥淓verything hinges on the bridge,鈥� Houser said.
The bridge will connect Fayette County to Washington County.
The neighboring West Virginia section opened Monday. Travelers using that portion of the road will not have to pay tolls.
Houser said in conjunction with the opening, two miles in Pennsylvania that couldn鈥檛 open until the West Virginia link was completed opened as well.
Crews worked to put up final touches, pavement markings and signs in the past two months. At Gans Road, a concrete barrier was removed and replaced with traffic devices.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been getting ready in anticipation of West Virginia opening,鈥� Houser said.