I-70 improvement project planned

By TAYLOR BROWN

tbrown@yourmvi.com

After weeks of design, an eight-mile section of Interstate 70 between Bentleyville and the Belle Vernon Bridge will soon be modernized.

Preliminary engineering for the construction project began in September.

SPK Engineering Inc. of Uniontown will consider mainline improvements along I-70 in the project area that includes the Lover Interchange and coordination with the Speers Interchange, which is under design as a separate project.

Property owners along the corridor received letters Oct. 23 informing them that PennDOT staff, consultants or contractors may need to enter their property to conduct surveys, engineering and environmental studies, soil exploration or tests and/or soundings to gather information.

Property owners will be notified, if possible, prior to any entry.  

The project is one of 24 high-priority projects that are part of an initiative to modernize and reconstruct all of I-70 in Washington and Westmoreland counties. 

Separate projects to improve interchanges in the project area include Bentleyville (Exit 32), SR 481 (Exit 35) and Toll 43 (Exit 37), and preservation of the Belle Vernon Bridge, which have already been completed. 

Portions of the roadway, like the structure carrying traffic over I-70 at the Speers Interchange, are expected to be constructed in 2022. 

Additionally, a pavement preservation project was completed this fall from SR 481 to approximately the Charleroi Interchange.

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