South Main Street in Washington to close for culvert project
PennDOT detouring traffic for 12 weeks beginning July 13
South Main Street is expected to be closed for nearly three months beginning next week as crews continue working on the $2.25 million culvert reconstruction project on the south side of Washington.
Beginning next Monday, the road will be closed for 12 weeks near its intersection with Park Avenue and is slated to reopen to traffic in late September, according to the state Department of Transportation.
The existing culvert, which was built in 1928, is being removed and replaced with a new reinforced concrete box culvert. In addition to replacing the culvert and repaving the roadways, PennDOT officials said the concrete curb, sidewalk and gutters will also be replaced in that area.
Crews closed Park Avenue for three weeks in June to install sections of the precast concrete culverts that will direct water from Catfish Creek under the roadway in a project that PennDOT officials hope will ease stormwater runoff problems at the notoriously flood-prone intersection. The installation of the new culvert is now moving over to the South Main portion of the Y-intersection after crews completed their work on Park Avenue late last month.
“The contractor did very well with the first phase and we’re looking forward to the completion of a successful project,” PennDOT spokeswoman Melissa Maczko said.
Beginning today, there will be single lane closures with flaggers directing traffic on South Main Street all week as crews continue working in the area. The full closure of South Main is scheduled to begin July 13 and will continue until late September.
The posted detour takes traffic from South Main Street Extension south to Lone Pine interchange and then north on Route 19 before coming back to East Maiden Street and back into Washington. Signs will be posted alerting drivers how to navigate around the detour.
Once that work is completed, there will be another two or three additional weeks with lane closures for final paving, overhead utility line relocations and other miscellaneous work, Maczko said. Maczko said the final completion date of the project is scheduled for early November.
South Main Street was closed for several weeks last fall while crews relocated utilities away from the intersection ahead of the construction project.