Published: June 01, 2009 12:00 am      

Counties tighten priority list

The statewide revenue decline for a transportation system that keeps commerce moving is being felt at the county level, with PennDOT managers in Cambria and Somerset forced to tighten up priority lists unlike anything they’ve done in recent years.

PennDOT employees in both counties will be doing less paving and the word “tentative” is now being used when managers talk of work they plan to accomplish with money in the 2009-2010 fiscal budget beginning July 1.

It is a double whammy with revenue for highway and bridge work down while those who maintain the transportation system watching unparalleled materials cost increases.

Costs of asphalt, stone and oil are monitored daily by Denny Mehora, Cambria County PennDOT maintenance manager and Joe Kelemen,

PennDOT’s Somerset County manager, each with crews that will spend the summer and fall improving secondary roads and a handful of bridges.

In Cambria there are 11 employees who will pave 9.5 miles of road this year using 13,316 tons of blacktop. In addition, the crews will do surface treatments – traditionally called tar and chip – to 45 miles of roads using 150,000 gallons of oil and 5,000 tons of stone.

These figures include a process called “skin patching,” or partial width sealing, to more than seven miles on two roads.

“Our budgets are going down so we have to adjust what our programs will be,” said Mehora,

“In past years we paved 18 miles of roadway, we cut that in half; we now can do half as much with the same amount of money.”

“We all know about the shortfall of revenue statewide and it’s going to impact on everyone throughout the state,” he said.

Mehora worries about the cost of blacktop running $225,000 more than in past years while oil costs are up $111,000 and stone alone is up $11,000 for the planned projects.

It’s the same problem in Somerset County said Kelemen, where his 13 employees will pave

30 miles of road this year using 31,000 tons of blacktop. The mileage is down from 45 in 2008.

Kelemen hopes to have enough money to tar and chip 77 miles of roadway using 285,000 gallons of oil and nearly 8,000 tons of stone.

Those figures include skin patching to parts of nine roadways countywide.

“Nothing here is ironclad,” Kelemen said of his list of projects, especially the pricey paving work.

“We may be able to do some work on some roads, but not catch the whole road.”



Road and bridge work scheduled

Cambria County

Roads to be paved by county PennDOT crews:

• Forest Hills Drive, Adams Township, 1 mile.

• Lemon Drop Road, East Carroll Township, 3 miles.

• Dutch and East Carroll roads, Allegheny Township, 4 miles.

• Cassandra Road, Portage Township, 0.4 mile.

• Huber Road, Elder Township, 0.7 miles.

Tar and chip:

• Shawnee Road, Summerhill Township. 4 miles.

• Beaver Valley Road, Clearfield Township, 4 miles.

• Roseland Road, Reade Township, 4. miles.

• Glendale Lake Road, Clearfield Township, 2 miles.

• Range Road, Reade Township, 1.5 miles.

• Market Street, Reade Township, 2.5 miles.

• Washington Avenue, Summerhill Township, 3 miles.

• Beyers Road, Croyle Township, 1 miles.

• Mineral Point Road, East Taylor Township, 2 miles.

• Iverson Road, Blacklick Township, 7 miles.

• Deveaux Street, West Carroll Township, 3 miles.

• St. Lawrence Road, Chest Township, 5 miles.

Patching:

• Evergreen Road, Summerhill Township, 6 miles.

• Killen School Road, Barr Township, 1 mile.

Bridge work:

• Box culvert replacement on Llanfair Road, Adams Township.



Somerset County

Roads to be paved by county PennDOT crews:

• Welsh Hill Road, Somerset and Stonycreek townships, 4.5 miles.

• Holsopple Road, Paint Township, 5 miles.

• PS of A Road, Shade Township, 2 miles.

• Oakdale Road, Elk Lick Township, 3 miles.

• Pocahontas Road, Elk Lick and Greenville townships, 6 miles.

• Coal Run Road, Elk Lick Township, 2.5 miles.

• Rockdale Road, Black Township, 4 miles.

• Posey Corner Road, Milford Township, 2.5 miles.

Tar and chip

• Causeway Drive, Stonycreek Township, 4 miles.

• Wambaugh Hollow Road, Allegheny Township, 1 mile.

• Shaffer Mountain Road, Shade Township, 5 miles.

• McKenzie Hollow Road, Larimer Township, 4 miles.

• Greenville Road, Greenville Township, 4 miles.

• Glencoe Road, Northampton Road, 8 miles.

• Wilkow Road, Stonycreek Township, 3 miles.

• Indiantown/Piedmont/Mudpike Road, Milford Township, 11.5 miles.

• Barronville Road, Middle Creek Township, 4 miles.

• Barron Church Road, Middle Creek Township, 4 miles.

• Triple Creek Acres Park Road, Middle Creek Township, 4 miles.

• Rolling Hill Road, Jenner Township, 2 miles.

• Casebeer Church/Quecreek Road, Lincoln and Jenner townships, 6.5 miles.

• Klines Mill Road, Jenner Township, 6.5 miles.

• Roaring Run Road, Conemaugh, 2 miles.

• Flat Run Road, Jenner Township, 0.6 miles.

Patching:

• Garrett Road, Middlecreek Township, 2 miles.

• Wilbur Road, Shade Township, 1.5 miles.

• Koontztown Road, Shade Township, 0.5 miles.

• Brush Creek Road, Larimer and Northampton townships, 8 miles.

• Johnson Road, Summit Township, 2.6 miles.

• Gebhart Road, Milford and Black townships, 4.5 miles.

• Walker Road, Black Township, 1 mile.

• Husband Road, Somerset and Lincoln townships, 3 miles.

• Carpenters Park Road, Conemaugh Township,

• mile.

Bridge work:

• Bridge on Brushcreek Road, Northampton Township, superstructure replacement.

• Bridge on Keysertown Road, Lincoln Township, superstructure replacement.

• Bridge on Draketown Road, Lower Turkeyfoot Township, deck upgrade.