PennDOT to display plans online for I-70, Laurel Valley projects

Beginning Wednesday, PennDOT will virtually display its plans for two major Westmoreland County projects: a revamped Arnold City exit on Interstate 70 and the central section of the Laurel Valley Transportation Improvement Project.

The I-70 plans will be available at i-70projects.com from 5 p.m. Wednesday through 5 p.m. Dec. 17.

The website will contain project design details, with visitors able to provide feedback and sign on to a project contact list.

A five-leg roundabout proposed for the Arnold City exit in Rostraver would connect the eastbound on- and off-ramps with Indian Hill and Finley roads.

Standard westbound ramps would connect with Indian Hill at an unsignalized intersection. Bridges carrying Indian Hill and Crawford Lane over the interstate are to be reconstructed immediately east of the existing spans.

The project also involves widening the median from 4 feet to 10 feet and the shoulders from 10 feet to 12 feet along a 1.75-mile segment of I-70, stretching from the bridge over the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad to a point nearly 1.5 miles east of the Arnold City exit.

An informational handout and comment form is available at the Rostraver Township Municipal Building, 201 Municipal Drive. Hours there are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fridays.

The I-70 project is part of an ongoing effort by PennDOT to update the interstate between New Stanton and the West Virginia border. Planning also is underway for an update of the Route 51 exit in Rostraver and replacement of the bridge that carries Fayette Street over I-70 in North Belle Vernon.

All other I-70 projects in Westmoreland County are either completed or under construction.

The public will get another chance to view and comment on plans for the middle section of the Laurel Valley road project, which is meant to improve safety and traffic flow along the Route 981 corridor between Mt. Pleasant and the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity.

A virtual display of plans for the segment of the project between Norvelt and Bingham Road in Mt. Pleasant Township will be available at laurelvalleyproject.com from 8 a.m. Wednesday through 5 p.m. Dec. 8.

Those plans initially were posted online from Sept. 30 to Oct. 7. PennDOT was concerned that some stakeholders might not have been notified in advance, so it will repeat the display with an extended public comment period.

The project segment, designated as Section V20, is about 3.5 miles in length and veers away from Route 981 to follow Route 2023 for much of its length. Plans are in the preliminary design stage for that section and for the northernmost segment, which would reconnect with existing Route 981 near the Westmoreland Airpark, with proposed roundabouts there and at the intersection of Route 130.

Officials held a ceremonial groundbreaking Nov. 12 for the project’s southern section, which calls for three roundabouts: Route 819 and Route 981; Hecla Road, State Street and 981; and Mt. Pleasant, Kecksburg and Hecla roads at 981, which all converge in Norvelt.

During the display period, printed information about the Laurel Valley project and comment forms will be available from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays at the Unity and Mt. Pleasant township buildings and at the airport concierge desk. The documents also will be available from 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at Adams Memorial Library, 1112 Ligonier St., Latrobe.