Mixed Opinions from Residents on Proposed Route 1 Project

The plans for a proposed Route 1 overhaul project were showcased in the Middletown Municipal Complex last week amid the very mixed opinions of the public.

The project, which will span from Old Lincoln Highway all the way down past Maple Avenue, will include taking out the raised mediums and replacing them with road barriers, reducing the multiple crossovers on the route to one entrance crossover and one exit crossover, and a 12 foot shoulder will be put into place to allow emergency vehicles and disabled vehicles to stop on  the road.

Several bridges crossing the route will also be involved in the road overhaul. The West Interchange road will be completely re-done and will be raised about 2 feet to accommodate larger vehicles.

Another bridge that will see improvements in the near future is the Highland Avenue Bridge. The Company plans on refurbishing the bridge by replacing the deck and beams of the bridge.

Other bridges that will be re-done in future years include the bridge on Maple Avenue, the bridge on Business Route 1, the bridge over Bristol Road, The bridge over Rockhill Drive, and the bridge over Street Road.

The Federal Highway Administration and PennDOT are spearheading the campaign for the project, which will take until around 2018 to be completed. The price tag for this project is predicted to be around $227 million according to official documents.

If the project goes forward, construction could start in 2015, according to PennDOT.

Officials also say the project’s main focus is to make the vital route safer for both the community and those who travel on it. “The overall purpose of the project is to replace and repair aging bridges while also incorporating safety enhancements to facilitate safe and efficient inter-modal travel along the U.S.1 corridor”.

Despite the thoughtfulness of the plans, there was still a decidedly mixed opinion over the repairs and improvements.

Some residents were concerned with things such as traffic and construction noise, and whether or not the improvements will actually make the road safe.

Residents such as Sue Dillon of Langhorne, who lives just off the highway, is worried about all of these things.

Because the project will be getting rid of a lot of the crossovers, Dillon is worried that residents like her will have to panic about getting off onto a super highway to go where they need to go.

“I don’t care if people on Route 1 sit in traffic for three hours – I want to be safe.” Dillon said.

Then there are other residents such as James Twiname of Langhorne Manor, who thinks that this project is a good idea now that he attended the open house.

Twiname, who has been in several near-accidents at the crossovers, thinks that getting rid of several of them will lessen the chance of any last minute merges onto the fender-bender-inducing roadways.

For more information on the Route 1 plan, visit www.improveus1-bucksco.com.