A public officials meeting and public plans display was held on Thursday, January 24, 2008 at the Freeport Junior High School. PennDOT District 10-0 and 12-0 officials and engineering consultants presented information on the proposed Freeport Bridge rehabilitation and reconstruction and the proposed northern bridge approach design.

The Freeport Bridge will be four lanes after reconstruction with a combination bike path/sidewalk on the western (downstream) side. The new roadway design at the northern bridge approach will simplify traffic patterns and improve safety by reducing the number of weave areas and intersections. The design includes traffic signals at the Freeport Bridge/Freeport Road intersection and the new Buffalo Creek Bridge/State Route 356 intersection.

PennDOT made several changes to the proposed design based on public input from previous meetings. These changes include:

• A northbound free flow traffic lane at the north end of the Freeport Bridge;
• A T-intersection at the south end of the proposed Buffalo Creek Bridge
• Revised connectivity of the Freeport Bridge bike path to the trail systems on each end of the bridge

The south end of the new Buffalo Creek Bridge will be a T-intersection with 2nd Street and Buffalo Street. A northbound free flow lane was added at the north end of the Freeport Bridge to allow uninterrupted traffic flow at the intersection in the northbound direction. A new bike path will take advantage of the bridge grade separation to provide connectivity between trails on each side of the river without an at-grade crossing of State Route 356.

Consultants presented the results of an origin and destination study. The study was conducted to address concerns within the local business community that the alternative will adequately address local travel patterns. The study results indicate a significant reduction in travel times through shorter driving routes. The study also indicates a relatively even distribution of traffic to and from the bridge to Freeport Road and to State Route 356 north with a slightly smaller number traveling into Freeport Borough. The Department is confident that the results of the study confirm the proposed design will work given the existing traffic distribution.

PennDOT District 10-0 and District 12-0 officials and local elected officials are working diligently to ensure that funding is in place on the regional 12-year plan in order for construction to begin in early 2010. A number of meeting participants and PennDOT officials noted the importance of this project to the surrounding communities. Attendees were able to ask specific questions to the design team, which will be addressed as the design progresses.

The displays shown at the public meeting are available for review on the Project Maps page of this website.

If you were unable to attend the meeting or have follow-up questions and comments you would like to ask PennDOT, please contact Bill Oshnack or Mark Rozich Contacts and we will be happy to assist you.

Archive Past Meetings: July 12th, 2007