Work on Youghiogheny River bridge to restrict traffic on I-70
Motorists on Interstate 70 can expect to encounter daytime lane restrictions in Rostraver and South Huntingdon beginning Wednesday, as work continues on reconstruction of the Route 51 interchange and improvement of an adjoining section of the interstate.
Single-lane restrictions for both eastbound and westbound traffic are planned between the Route 51 and Smithton exits. Weather permitting, the restrictions will be in place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily through Friday.
This will allow Geronimo Painting to work on the rehabilitation of the Matthew Smelser Memorial Bridge. The bridge carries I-70 over the Youghiogheny River at the border of South Huntingdon and Rostraver.
The span was renamed for a 43-year-old Carroll Township resident and paramedic supervisor with Rostraver-West Newton EMS who was struck by a tractor-trailer and killed while responding to an crash on Jan. 5, 2020, on the bridge.
Work on the bridge is part of a $120.6 million PennDOT project to reconfigure the Route 51 interchange and widen the median and shoulders along a section of the interstate.
A one-mile segment of Route 51 also is being improved with widening and upgraded intersections.
PennDOT officials have said the revamped Route 51 should be substantially complete by the end of this construction season, but work on the full project may continue for two additional years.
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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