Investigators are releasing new information on a multi-vehicle crash in a work zone last week that left a New Jersey man seriously injured and jammed up traffic on Route 1.
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The crash happened Monday, April 20, on the stretch of Route 1 between the Pine Street (Route 413) and West Highland Avenue overpasses, near the border of Langhorne Manor Borough and Middletown Township.
A Cadillac driven by an 85-year-old Bensalem woman was traveling northbound when it entered a PennDOT work area in the center median. The Cadillac struck a PennDOT traffic signal sign and trailer that had been positioned to alert motorists of a left-lane closure for maintenance work, according to the Pennsylvania State Police.
After the initial impact, the Cadillac struck a northbound Ford F-150, forcing the pickup truck into a guide rail.
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The force of the crash sent the PennDOT sign trailer into the southbound lanes, where it was struck by an oncoming Volvo tractor-trailer.
The Volvo came to a rest in the merge lane of the Route 1 access road.
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The driver of the tractor-trailer, a 56-year-old man from Lawrenceville, New Jersey, sustained a serious leg injury, state police said.
After being extricated by firefighters, he was transported by the Penndel-Middletown Emergency Squad to Jefferson Torresdale Hospital in Philadelphia for treatment.
State police said the Cadillac driver is being cited for failure to obey a traffic control device.
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The wreck forced a blockage on Route 1 in both directions for an extended period while crews cleared the crash and debris.
PennDOT officials recently issued a warning for motorists to exercise increased caution in work zones, citing the 93 PennDOT employees that have died in the line of duty since 1970.
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According to state data, there were 1,392 crashes in Pennsylvania work zones last year, resulting in 12 fatalities.
