PennDOT plans Route 119 detour in New Stanton
PennDOT road work is set to trigger a detour beginning Wednesday on Route 119 in New Stanton and traffic interruptions on Thursday on Route 51 in Rostraver.
Motorists heading south on Route 119, from Youngwood toward Connellsville, will be diverted along a detour because the southbound ramp they normally use — at the interchange with the Pennsylvania Turnpike Route 66 bypass — will be closed.
Depending on weather conditions, the ramp will be closed from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. The closure will allow PennDOT and turnpike crews to repair and reinstall a light pole.
With the ramp closed, motorists will continue onto Interstate 70 westbound and will take Exit 57 for New Stanton/Hunker. Detour signs will direct them through two roundabouts and back eastbound on I-70. Following the middle lane of the interstate, they will continue onto New Stanton-Youngwood Road and then take the exit for Route 119 south to Connellsville.
Single-lane restrictions in both directions are slated from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday on Route 51 between Concord Lane and Cobble Lane/Porter Road in Rostraver.
Traffic also will be halted intermittently, for up to 15 minutes at a time, as crews from Golden Triangle Construction Co. remove the old Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway superstructure.
With delays likely, flaggers will control traffic, assisted by township police.
The work along Route 51 is part of PennDOT’s $120.6 million project to revamp the highway’s interchange with I-70 to create a Diverging Diamond format.
Lanes of traffic on new twin Route 51 bridges over the interstate will switch to the opposite side of the road and back again, through intersections with traffic signals. That will allow drivers to turn left to enter the interstate without crossing opposing lanes of traffic.
Also, a 1-mile section of Route 51 will be widened, Finley Road will be relocated to form a four-way intersection at Route 981, and a left-turn lane is being added from Route 51 to Ridge Road.
The overall project is slated for completion by October 2027.
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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