Work moves ahead for Route 981 roundabout, realignment in Mt. Pleasant Township
People who live and work along Route 981 in Mt. Pleasant Township have mixed feelings about a PennDOT project that is underway to reshape sections of the road as part of the Laurel Valley Transportation Improvement Project.
The overall project is meant to improve safety and traffic flow in the Route 981 corridor between Mt. Pleasant and the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity by softening or eliminating curves, widening lanes and shoulders and revising intersections.
The project is designed to moderate sharp curves and steep grades in the road where there have been crashes. It also will improve drainage and add an 8-foot-wide shoulder for pedestrians, according to PennDOT.
Walsh Construction is the general contractor, and the first phase of work is underway at points along a 4.5-mile stretch from Route 819 north to the village of Norvelt.
Jim Pawlikowsky lives at the intersection of Cherry Blossom Drive, south of the point where Route 981 passes beneath the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Traffic on Route 981 below the overpass is reduced to a single lane, controlled by a signal, during the construction.
Pawlikowsky will lose some front footage of his lawn as a result of the project, but it’s a sacrifice he’s willing to make for a road that will be widened to include two lanes, each 12 feet across.
“I have no problem with that,” he said, noting he is glad the road is receiving attention. “I’m all for it, but I’ll be happy when it’s done.”
Pawlikowsky said he is concerned about speeding on Route 981 and whether the improvements will add to that problem.
“The speed limit right now is supposed to be 45,” he said, “but, if you drive at 45, somebody is going to be on your tail. I don’t know what it’s going to be when they have a nice, smooth, brand new road.”
PennDOT noted most of the roadway included in the project is posted for 45 mph, with some sections limited to 35 mph. Once the project is completed, the limit will be 45 mph throughout.
“All curves and sight distances were designed to handle this speed limit safely,” PennDOT said. “Low-cost safety improvements — such as centerline and edgeline rumble strips, which reduce lane departure and distracted-driver type of crashes — were also added to enhance safety throughout the corridor.”
Crews have been clearing soil and moving utilities in preparation for constructing a new roundabout intersection at the junction of Routes 981 and 819, at the southern end of the Laurel Valley project, according to PennDOT.
A box culvert will be constructed to carry Shupe Run under a new section of roadway before work shifts to the roundabout, which should be completed sometime in 2023.
Route 819 traffic approaching the roundabout site from the south is being detoured. Passenger vehicles are being redirected along State Street and Route 981. Larger vehicles are being sent along Routes 31 and 119.
Denny and Patty Gaal, who live along Route 981 just north of Route 819, aren’t convinced the roundabout is needed.
“In the 50 years we’ve been here, there were not that many accidents” at the Route 819 intersection, Patty Gaal said. “People stopped when it was a four-way stop.”
There have been six crashes at that intersection over the past five years, PennDOT said, adding, “Though that number may not seem high, we try to reduce crashes any time we can. Roundabouts have proven safety benefits.”
PennDOT indicated traffic and safety data figured heavily in planning for several roundabouts throughout the project.
Route 981 already has been widened in front of the Gaal residence — reducing the length of the driveway so it will hold just four cars now, down from six.
”We’ll work around it, whatever happens,” Patty Gaal said of the project. “We’re being patient until they’re all done.”
Like Pawlikowsky, Denny Gaal has some reservations about the project’s potential effect on speeding.
“I’m kind of glad those curves are there,” he said of the road. “You’ve got kids who get their driver’s license when they’re 16. They blitz through here, and the curves have got to slow them down.”
Just south of the Route 819 project, adjacent to the roundabout construction area, Mad Pies pizza shop has been impacted by the project. The business had a paved parking lot that has been replaced with gravel during work on the road.
“It’s been interesting,” Mad Pies employee Joe McKee said of the construction process, which has included an influx of heavy truck traffic.
He said he’s concerned about the roundabout, which allows motorists to proceed through an intersection by yielding instead of coming to a complete stop.
“People would be kind of driving by,” he said. “That’s the whole point of a roundabout.”
On an early Saturday evening, a steady stream of customers arrived to pick up orders while more were being taken by phone.
The addition of roundabouts might spur increased development along Route 981 north of Mt. Pleasant, providing a boon to all businesses there, as they did when roundabouts were added in New Stanton, McKee said.
“There definitely have been things happening by the roundabouts,” said New Stanton borough manager Jeff McLaughlin. That includes development of a Hampton Inn and a Get Go convenience store and expansion and renovation of the Sheetz store.
Realigning Route 981
Workers on the Laurel Valley project also have been moving ground for realignment of segments of Route 981 — between the Hecla Road/State Street intersection and the Pennsylvania Turnpike overpass; and between Carpentertown Road and Walton’s Lane.
A roundabout also is planned in Norvelt, to improve a complex intersection where Route 981 converges with Mt. Pleasant, Kecksburg and Hecla roads. Work there isn’t expected to begin until the end of 2023 or early in 2024, according to PennDOT.
PennDOT intends to place yet another roundabout at the Hecla Road/State Street intersection with Route 981.
The first phase of the Laurel Valley project has an estimated cost of $55 million, with work expected to extend through 2024.
The project includes two more proposed phases: a central section, between Norvelt and Route 130 in Unity, which includes a shift from Route 981 to follow a portion of Route 2023 — known in various segments as Holly Place Road, Hill Churches Road and Bell Memorial Church Road; a northern section extending from Route 130 to the area of the airport and the Westmoreland County Airpark.
Visit laurelvalleyproject.com for more details.
Jeff Himler is a TribLive reporter covering Greater Latrobe, Ligonier Valley, Mt. Pleasant Area and Derry Area school districts and their communities. He also reports on transportation issues. A journalist for more than three decades, he enjoys delving into local history. He can be reached at jhimler@triblive.com.
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