In an effort to eliminate the bottleneck at their border, Bridgeville and Collier are studying what it would look like to widen Route 50 between Mayer Street in Collier and Bower Hill Road in Bridgeville.
Bridgeville Manager Joe Kauer said the municipalities are looking to enhance plans presented in 2015 by the Route 50 Task Force and update design renderings and cost estimates for necessary Right of Way acquisitions.
“This design will also include street scape improvements that would relocate the overhead utilities continuing the traditional downtown feel of central Bridgeville, and advance pedestrian connectivity between the two towns to the shopping centers,” Kauer said.
Kauer anticipates planning work to occur within three to six months.
In 2015, the Route 50 Task Force retained Gateway Engineers to develop three traffic improvement plans for Route 50 in Bridgeville, Collier and South Fayette.
Plans included:
• Widening Chartiers Street and the south-end bridge over Chartiers Creek with supplemental improvements to the intersection with Millers Run Road in South Fayette;
• Reconfiguring Bower Hill Road between Commercial Street and Washington Avenue;
• Widening the north end of Washington Avenue in Bridgeville between Prestley Road into Collier up to the intersection with Mayer Street.
“Over the past several years, the first two phases of these plans have been implemented making significant improvements to the flow of traffic along Route 50,” Kauer said.
In the past two years, Bridgeville and Collier have undergone community planning to upgrade each of their comprehensive plans, Kauer said. Residents of both communities agree that additional work is needed to improve Route 50, including making efforts to eliminate the bottleneck into Bridgeville at the Collier border, in front of the Chartiers Valley Shopping Center to the intersection of Prestley Road.
“Recently, the Bridgeville Planning Commission has recommended that this roadway widening be extended all the way to the intersection of Bower Hill Road on Route 50,” Kauer said. “This will allow Bridgeville to extend its walkable downtown feel from bridge to bridge on Washington Avenue.”
For the north end of Washington Avenue, the task force proposed widening Washington Avenue to two lanes in each direction, Kauer said. Prestley Road at Washington Avenue would also be widened to three lanes, which would allow traffic coming from Prestley Road onto Washington Avenue to have one lane dedicated to right turns and another for left turns.
On Washington Avenue going out of Bridgeville will be two lanes into Collier, and coming into Bridgeville, it will be two lanes with the right lane dedicated for traffic onto Prestley Road, Kauer said.
“Once this plan is implemented, it is envisioned to improve vehicular traffic, reduce queues at the signalized intersections, improve pedestrian safety and mobility, reduce environmental effects caused by the traffic and advance revitalization in both the north end of Bridgeville and the Collier Township commercial district,” Kauer said.
The municipalities have been in contact with the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, Allegheny County and PennDOT for funding for the project, Kauer said.