Langhorne Borough Opposes New Route 1 Interchange

The planned final phase of the Route 1 overhaul has ruffled feathers in Langhorne Borough.

Some residents of the tree-filled borough of about 1,570 residents are opposed to PennDOT’s plan to close access roads and create a new partial cloverleaf interchange at Pine Street (Route 413). They worry the new interchange would divert more traffic onto already-busy two-lane roads and the town’s neighborhoods.

Last week, Langhorne Borough Council voted 4-3 to approve a letter that will be sent to PennDOT requesting a review of alternatives to the state transportation agency’s existing plan. The council also voted 4-3 to hire Safe Highway Engineering, of Trevose, as the traffic engineer to review data related to the project on behalf of the borough.

PennDOT is in the middle of a multi-phase project to overhaul Route 1 from Bensalem Township to just past the existing Pine Street overpass in Middletown Township.

As previously reported by this news organization, the partial cloverleaf interchange on and off of Route 1 will connect with Pine Street. The move would mark the end of Route 1 access road connections from Langhorne Manor Borough and create a roundabout to replace the intersection with the flashing lights where Pine Street, South Bellevue and West Highland Avenue all meet.

The majority of the work will take place in Langhorne Manor Borough and Middletown Township. Only a small portion, including the widening of Pine Street in the immediate area of the interchange, will take place in Langhorne Borough. Pine Street will go to four lanes slightly within Langhorne Borough’s borders, but it will return to two lanes well before the intersection with West Maple Avenue.

The Langhorne Borough Planning Commission helped craft the letter being sent from the borough to PennDOT.

“We understand and agree with the need for safety improvements on US1. However, an interchange is fundamentally incompatible with the Langhorne Borough Comprehensive Plan adopted in 2014. Given our town’s vibrant pedestrian community, its truly historic character, and its importance in Black history as an 18 th century settlement for former slaves, the appropriate goal is to divert traffic from – not invite it into – the Borough. Regardless of what traffic might come in from a “no-build” scenario, an interchange with four lanes plus up to two turning lanes will open the gates for more cars; if current trends are any indication, they will race for position as they enter the town, ignore and pose dangers to pedestrians, and seek faster transit by speeding through side streets,” the letter reads.

The letter addressed to Louis Belmonte, the acting regional executive for PennDOT, cites concerns raised by residents about traffic headaches that could be caused by the overhaul and calls for a “pause” until things can be sorted out.

The letter said there are worries about “greater traffic volume; higher speeds as drivers jockey for position or cut through side streets; reduced pedestrian safety; economic impact to businesses and property values; dramatically reduced quality of life; and more.”

In addition to the borough’s letter, the Langhorne Borough Business Association also submitted a letter of opposition to PennDOT.

At last month’s planning commission meeting, there were comments that widening Pine Street near the interchange and putting more traffic onto the road could split the town and make it dangerous for people crossing the busy street.

Resident Bernadette West said the interchange would deposit significant traffic in the borough and cut off Mayor’s Playground and the library to those on the other side of Pine Street.

Mike Spadaro, a 36-year Langhorne Borough resident who moved from New York, said he worries additional traffic will change the character of the borough.

Langhorne Borough Planning Commission Chairperson Brian Smiley raised alarm the overhaul as it is planned could change why people want to live in a small borough.

“It would irreparably change Langhorne Borough,” he said.

John Picerno, the owner of Picerno’s Gas and Convenience Store at the corner of South Bellevue Avenue and the Route 1 access road in Middletown Township, said he was opposed to the plan. He told the planning commission PennDOT’s interchange plan caused the $1.7 million sale of his business to fall through recently.

Smiley said he was in favor of safety improvements and modernization of Route 1, but the current plan from PennDOT doesn’t fit the area.

PennDOT has proposed an overhaul of Route 1 since at least 2014. Their 2014 plan, which would improve access to the roads near Pine Street and not create the interchange, is currently preferred by the Langhorne Borough Planning Commission.

Paul Schneider, the vice chairperson of the Langhorne Borough Planning Commission, urged council to meet with PennDOT.

“It can all begin with a discussion about how best to meet the needs of PennDOT and Langhorne Borough,” he said.

While Langhorne Borough has raised opposition to the current interchange plan, Langhorne Manor Borough and Middletown Township officials have not made public any major concerns.

State Rep. Frank Farry, a Republican from Langhorne Borough and husband of council member Kristen Farry, said he has worked to make sure all the towns are part of the PennDOT planning process.

“I have two communities supportive of the project and one divided on it. I’m trying to help get information, but there’s some misinformation circulating,” he said.

Farry said PennDOT hasn’t given any indication they will be stopping their plan. He noted he has recently talked with PennDOT officials about the project.

If PennDOT continues to move forward, the third phase of the Route 1 overall, which will see the interchange constructed, could begin in October 2026.

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