Major Intersection Improvements & New Roundabout Project Nearing Start

January 12, 2024

A major PennDOT project is set to reconstruct two busy intersections in Middletown Township, the public learned recently.

Nick Valla, assistant township manager of Middletown Township, said this month that reconstruction at the intersections of Bridgetown Pike and Langhorne-Yardley Road and at Langhorne-Yardley Road and Woodbourne Road is slated to commence soon.

The long-awaited project, which has been years in the making, is now in its final stages of PennDOT securing a contractor, Valla said.

The undertaking has a budget of $12.9 million, up from the initial $10 million estimate, according to PennDOT documents.

The project is design to improve traffic flow and safety.

Key features include replacing the T-intersection at Langhorne-Yardley Road and Bridgetown Pike with a single-lane roundabout. PennDOT has acquired property in Bucks County’s Core Creek Park to facilitate this development.

For the Langhorne-Yardley and Woodbourne Road intersection, plans include improved road alignment, additional turn lanes on all sides, a dedicated left-turn lane near Erica Drive, and upgraded traffic signals.

PennDOT also plans to upgrade the stretch of Langhorne-Yardley Road between the two intersections.

PennDOT has designed to project to boost pedestrian and cyclist access by adding paved shoulders.

Unlike traditional traffic circles, the proposed roundabout will feature yield signs instead of stop signals to enhance safety.

In a study released by PennDOT in September 2023, data on 42 state route roundabouts previously controlled by stops or signals showed significant safety improvements, including a 24% reduction in serious injury crashes, a 51% decrease in non-serious injury crashes, and a 3% overall drop in total crashes.