HARRISBURG, Pa.-- A roughly one-mile portion of Route 11/15 between Interstate 81 in Cumberland County and Ridgeview Drive south of Marysville Borough in Perry County was closed to all traffic shortly after 9 PM tonight. The road is scheduled to remain closed until July 30 for work that involves removing vegetation and loose rocks from the steep slope of the adjacent mountain and installing a wire mesh protection system over portions of the rock face. PennDOT has contracted with J.D. Eckman, Inc. of Atglen, Pennsylvania, to conduct the Route 11/15 Rock Slope Safety Improvement Project at a cost of $18.9 million. There is a financial incentive in the construction contract to encourage the contractor to reopen the highway sooner than July 30 ($50,000 per day, to a maximum of $2 million).
PennDOT recently launched a new construction project web page, www.511PA.com/marysville, to assist motorists dealing with the closure of Route 11/15. The new page, hosted through the department’s www.511PA.com traveler information website, is dedicated to monitoring traffic conditions related to the Route 11/15 construction project and the official detour and incident management routes established for the project, especially the heavily travelled Route 22/322 on the east side of the Susquehanna River in Dauphin County.
The page features a map highlighting the Route 11/15 corridor where the rock slope safety improvement project is located as well as the Route 22/322 detour. The current speed of traffic in both directions is indicated. If an incident such as a crash occurs, the location of the incident will be identified. If an incident occurs that substantially slows or stops traffic, a detour route for that incident will be displayed. The public can also sign up for email alerts or access links to more detailed information about the construction project.
Users can find the page on the 511PA website by clicking on the “Marysville Rock Slope Project Website” banner link on the right side of the homepage, or by using the dropdown menu for Construction Websites on the left side of the homepage and selecting Marysville Rock Slope Project.
“The Marysville Rock Slope Project Website on 511PA can be a helpful aid for local businesses, commuters and other motorists that will help us all better manage and deal with traffic while Route 11/15 is closed,” said Mike Keiser, PennDOT district executive for south central Pennsylvania. “It is information that should help all of us make better decisions.”
Though the goal is to reopen Route 11/15 to traffic by July 30, the overall project does not wrap up until November. Consequently, daytime and nighttime lane restrictions on Route 11/15 will occur during the remainder of the summer and into the fall until the project’s completion. The project includes removing vegetation from the slopes, rock scaling at slope heights varying from 140 to 250 feet, the installation of wire mesh protection systems placed against the rock face, the installation of rock fall fence and safety shape barriers in the shoulder area, shoulder reconstruction, milling and resurfacing along various sections of the roadway, drainage, guide rail, signing and pavement marking upgrades, and tree removal and trimming along the entire length of the project.
In addition to following traffic conditions related to this project, motorists can use www.511PA.com to check conditions on nearly 40,000 roadway miles in Pennsylvania. The service is free and available 24 hours a day, and provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 770 traffic cameras, including 94 cameras in south central Pennsylvania. 511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices. Information can also be accessed by calling 5-1-1 or by following regional Twitter alerts accessible on the 511PA website.