For Feb. 21, Road Watch Col.
PennDOT moved swiftly in 2009 to put 30 transportation projects out for bid in the five-county Philadelphia Region that were financed with $257,757,000 of federal economic recovery funds.
At the one-year anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, 18 of the 30 transportation projects in the Philadelphia region that were fully or partially financed with ARRA funds are in construction and four have been completed. The remaining eight ARRA-funded projects will start shortly.
“Our aim since early last year was to move ARRA projects into construction as quickly as possible to help retain and create jobs and to inject these federal funds into our economy,” said PennDOT District Executive Lester C. Toaso.
“These special federal funds also helped us move important projects into construction that would not otherwise be underway at this time,” he said.
The total dollar value of the 30 ARRA transportation projects in the Philadelphia region is $348,442,225, which includes construction inspection costs.
The Philadelphia area ARRA projects include road and bridge improvements, Intelligent Transportation System installations, traffic signal upgrades, multi-use trails, and curb ramp replacements. Based on the dollar value of the 30 projects, 36 percent of the projects are for roadway improvements; 32 percent for bridges; 19 percent for electrical upgrades (e.g., ITS, traffic signals); 7 percent for paving and 6 percent for enhancement projects (e.g., trails, sidewalks, curb ramps).
To learn more about how the federal economic recovery program will benefit Pennsylvania, visit www.recovery.pa.gov.
The Delaware County projects include:
BULLET I-95 Intelligent Transportation Improvement Project: Construction began Nov. 5,2009 on the $13,633,000 million project to install Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) components on Interstate 95 in Delaware County and Philadelphia and Interstate 476 in Delaware County.
The project covers 16 miles of I-95 between the Delaware state line and Broad Street Interchange in Delaware County and Philadelphia, respectively, and 14 miles of I-476 between the I-95 and Route 30 interchanges in Delaware County.
On I-95, PennDOT is installing 17 closed circuit television cameras; three dynamic message signs; 14 vehicle detectors; and 15 travel time readers.
On I-476, crews are installing eight dynamic message signs and 11 travel time readers. Construction is scheduled to finish in spring 2011. Cost: $13,633,000 (100% ARRA funds); bid opened: June 4, 2009; contract award: June 16, 2009.
BULLET Delaware County Curb Ramps: Work began June 15, 2009 to replace 1,000 ADA ramps along 13 state highways in Delaware County under a $4,818,551 project. Construction is scheduled to finish in May 2010.
Cost: $4,818,551 (100% ARRA funds); bid opened: April 2, 2009; contract award: April 9, 2009.
BULLET Improvement of PA 252/White Horse Road Intersection: Construction began Sept. 28, 2010, to improve the intersection of Route 252 (Darby Paoli Road) and White Horse Road in Newtown and Easttown Township, Chester County.
Crews installed a traffic signal at the previously unsignalized intersection to improve traffic flow and safety. The new traffic signal includes emergency pre-emption equipment to allow for emergency vehicles to receive priority control through the intersection, a video detection system to maximize green light time on Route 252 (Darby Paoli Road) and an advance green phase for left turns onto White Horse Road from northbound Route 252
(Darby-Paoli Road).
Newtown funded the engineering design phase of this improvement project.
The project was finished in December 2009. Cost: $129,291 (100% ARRA funds); bid opened: July 16, 2009; contract award: July 21, 2009.
BULLET Brookhaven Curb Ramp Replacements: Construction began Oct. 19, 2009 to replace 36 ADA curb ramps at seven intersections along Brookhaven Road in Brookhaven under an $189,900 contract. Construction was completed in December 2009.
Cost: $1,947,725 (100% ARRA funds); bid opened: June 11, 2009; contract award: June 23, 2009.
BULLET Brookhaven Traffic Signal Improvement: Work began Nov. 2, 2009 on a $203,158 municipal project to improve traffic signals in Brookhaven. Crews are improving traffic signals at six intersections on Route 352 (Edgmont Avenue) and at the intersection of Bridgewater Road and West Brookhaven Road in Brookhaven. Ina ddition, new pedestrian signals and signs are being installed at four intersections on Route 352 (Edgmont Avenue) in the borough.
BULLET Valley Road Repair and Resurfacing: Work began Sept. 30, 2009 on a $164,836 project to repair and resurface Valley Road in Edgmont. Crews repaired and resurfaced township-owned Valley Road between Route 352 (Middletown Road) and Brick House Farm Road.
Construction was completed in late Oct. 2009. Cost: $164,836 (100% ARRA funds); bid opened: Sept. 3, 2009; contract award: Sept. 17, 2009.
R1 Airport Line
Due to the volume of snow, scheduled shuttle busing on the SEPTA R1 Airport Line has been cancelled this weekend, but there will be regular R1 train service to the airport.
Airport Line shuttle bus operation is scheduled to resume between 30th Street Station and the airport for Amtrak construction the following weekends: March 13-14, March 20-21 and March 27-28.

Traffic Delays
Chester, Parkside and Brookhaven – ADA ramp construction with restrictions between 21st Street and Beachwood Road 7 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays.
Chester – Seventh Street, ADA ramp construction with lane restrictions at Highland Avenue 7 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays.
I-95 North/South – Upper Chichester, Lower Chichester, Chester, Upland, Ridley Township, Ridley Park, Tinicum, Chester -- Intelligent Transportation System Foundation installation with lane closures between Naamans Creek Road and Broad Street 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Upper Darby -- Garrett Road, PECO Energy installation between Shadeland Avenue and Riverview Road 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Aldan – Providence Road, Aqua utility installation with restrictions at Albert Avenue 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Collingdale – MacDade Boulevard, borough utility installation between Felton and Roberta avenues 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays through Feb. 25.
Ridley Township – Fairview Road, Aqua Pa. utility installation, closed/detoured between Sherman Avenue and Emlem Street 7 a.m.-7 p.m., with 24-hour closure, detour posted Feb. 15-26.
Baltimore Pike (U.S. Route 1) – Middletown and Chester Heights, bridge replacement with lane restrictions between Darlington and Station roads, 24-hour restrictions through June 2011. Work began Oct. 12.
Road Watch appears Sundays. Only messages and mail with phone numbers will be considered. E-mail: jroman@delcotimes.com.

ROAD WATCH for Feb. 14,
Courtesy of the road – what’s that? – especially after two back-to-back snowstorms that helped set an all time record for the snowiest winter on record, 71.6 inches.
Many secondary roads and back streets of Haverford, Upper Darby, Springfield and Clifton Heights, et al, were still packed with snow and ice as of Friday morning.
And of course, many motorists weren’t adjusting their speed or driving ability to conditions. For example:
BULLET Tailgating – as I proceeded very slowly up my street in Havertown the other night with my left turn signal on and slowed down to cut through two high banks of snow on both sides of my hilly driveway, I was tailgated by two reckless drivers who almost ran into me.
As I drove at or below the 25 mph speed limit on curvy Glendale Road going to work, I was also tailgated by an impatient driver who was oblivious to the hard-packed snow still lingering on the road one morning.
BULLET Failure to Yield – many back streets in Westgate Hills and Drexel Hill became one-lane roads and only had enough room for one vehicle to pass through because of the hills of snow on each side of the road.
I slowed down several times and tried to bear to the right side – without getting stuck in a snowpile – as some discourteous driver never slowed down coming head-on. Only one time, while I was going home from work did a fellow motorist flash their high beams when I stopped at a stop sign before them, signaling me it was OK for me to make my left turn two blocks from home.
BULLET Snow Hills – at virtually every corner where snowplows had to pile up snow require caution when approaching an intersection, because your visibility is partially blocked.
BULLET Snowy Roofs – Wish I had a dollar for every SUV and work van or passenger van I saw that had snow or ice piled up on their roofs. That motorist behind you really doesn’t appreciate it when all that white stuff starts spattering all over his or her windshield.
BULLET Snow Drifts – the state driving test doesn’t help judge your driving ability on ice or snow unfortunately. Too many drivers who are out on the road in a snowstorm shouldn’t be, both young and old. Like why would you pull over into a snowdrift if you didn’t have to, and get stuck?
BULLET Last but not least – if you don’t adequately maintain your vehicle from the tires on up – and have proper windshield anti-freeze and wipers, then you’re an accident waiting to happen.
Oh, yeah – how about fully cleaning off that snow and ice from your vehicle before hitting the road? It’s more important to have an ice scraper/brush in the car than CDs.
I-95 Bridge Repairs
Lane restrictions are scheduled this week on I-95 North/South in Philadelphia for bridge repairs, weather permitting, PennDOT said.
Weekdays, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., I-95 will be restricted between Girard Avenue and Woodhaven Road (Route 63) for bridge structure repairs.
Weekdays, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., I-95 will be restricted between Academy Road and Woodhaven Road for bridge structure repairs.
Barry Bridge
There will be intermittent traffic stoppages on the Commodore Barry Bridge in Chester 12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m. for bridge bearing replacement on the bridge.
The work is part of PennDOT’s $71.1 million project to construct two new ramps off the bridge to provide direct access between I-95 and Second Street (Route 291).
Construction is scheduled to finish in 2011.
Traffic Delays
Chester, Parkside and Brookhaven – ADA ramp construction with restrictions between 21st Street and Beachwood Road 7 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays.
Chester – Seventh Street, ADA ramp construction with lane restrictions at Highland Avenue 7 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays.
I-95 North/South – Upper Chichester, Lower Chichester, Chester, Upland, Ridley Township, Ridley Park, Tinicum, Chester -- Intelligent Transportation System Foundation installation with lane closures between Naamans Creek Road and Broad Street 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Upper Darby -- Garrett Road, PECO Energy installation between Shadeland Avenue and Riverview Road 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Aldan – Providence Road, Aqua utility installation with restrictions at Albert Avenue 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Collingdale – MacDade Boulevard, borough utility installation between Felton and Roberta avenues 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays through Feb. 25.
Ridley Township – Fairview Road, Aqua Pa. utility installation, closed/detoured between Sherman Avenue and Emlem Street 7 a.m.-7 p.m., with 24-hour closure, detour posted Feb. 15-26.
Chester Pike – Ridley Township and Eddystone, PECO Energy utility work between Simpson Street and Old Bullens Lane 9 a.m.-3 p.m. through Feb. 18. Work began Jan. 28.
Baltimore Pike (U.S. Route 1) – Middletown and Chester Heights, bridge replacement with lane restrictions between Darlington and Station roads, 24-hour restrictions through June 2011. Work began Oct. 12.
Road Watch appears Sundays. Only messages and mail with phone numbers will be considered. E-mail: jroman@delcotimes.com.

For Feb. 7----Road Watch…
OK, so there’s a recent study by the Highway Loss Data Institute that some legislators and the AAA believe that knocks the winds out of the sails of the issue of the need for a statewide ban on using hand-held cell phones while driving.
I think we need a widespread poll of drivers/readers – not just the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety which only conducted a study of insurance claim data from three states and the District of Columbia before and after hand-held cell phone laws were passed.
Their study found that there were no reductions in crashes in those states after the bans took effect. Do these statistics also include accidents attributable to alcohol- and drug-related use, speeding and reckless/aggressive driving? That’s not made clear.
Such bans have been enacted in seven states so far, including nearby New Jersey, Utah, Oregon and Washington.
An AAA Mid-Atlantic spokeswoman last week said the study was “significant” as Pennsylvania and numerous other states seek to implement such bans for drivers in a belief that it will make the roads safer.
The AAA said the study reinforces a long-held AAA concern that hand-held cell phone bans have limited impact because they cause drivers to switch to still-risky, hands-free cell phones.
The spokeswoman further added that hands-free phones offer no real safety advantages over hand-held phone because conversation (or DUIC) is the distracting factor, not the device itself.
H.B. 2070 – which also bans texting while driving -- is still in the Senate Transportation Committee and awaits a vote in the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Sen. Dominic Pileggi is aware of the recent study, said his spokesman Erik Arneson.
He said that’s an issue Pileggi would like to see discussed in detail at a public hearing, which the transportation committee is considering holding.
Sounds good to me, like in a large auditorium at the Delaware County Community College, not some cramped borough hall.
Rep. Greg Vitali, D-166, of Haverford – to no surprise -- agreed with the study and staunchly maintains that the chief problem is “…not so much the talking but rather the aversion of the eyes from the road.”
In a rare occurrence, fellow columnist Gil Spencer even saw eye-to-eye with Vitali. I don’t.
He and others don’t get it that PREOCCUPATION is the key fact that makes DUIC such a dangerous distraction. To “preoccupy” is to dominate or engross the mind of a person, according to the dictionary.
You can be engrossed in a phone conversation and be looking out your windshield, but you still may not be paying attention to what’s in your field of vision – road conditions.
In other words, your mind’s somewhere else, get it?
It’s almost like daydreaming – deep in thought about some personal or stressful problem or some task that has to be done, etc.
Changing the radio, CD player or defroster buttons isn’t comparable. You can always take a sip of coffee when you’re stopped at a light.
It’s not the same as preoccupation. Get it!
Any vote on this important issue should be judged on the consensus of the driving public – especially those who have to daily endure careless drivers glued mentally to the hand-held cell phone stuck against their ear as they drive one-handed.
R1 Airport Line
Due to anticipated severe weather, SEPTA has cancelled scheduled work this weekend and will operate regular train service on the R1 Airport Regional Rail line Saturday and Sunday.
For the past several weekends, SEPTA shuttle buses have transported riders between 30th Street Station and the Philadelphia International Airport while overhead wire crews and Amtrak was performed.
The weekend shuttle buses will resume Feb. 13-14, March 13-14, March 20-21 and March 27-28.
Outbound Airport Line trains will terminate at 30th Street Station where waiting buses will carry passengers standing by en route to the airport.
Shuttle buses will depart 30th Street Station nine minutes later than the scheduled train departure time.
University City (Convention Avenue) customers will be able to board shuttle buses destined to the airport every half-hour starting at 4:36 a.m. and continuing until 11:36 p.m.
Eastwick Station customers will be able to board shuttle buses at Bartram Avenue at Station Drive to the airport at 4:54 a.m., then every half-hour from 4:54 a.m. until 11:47 p.m.
Inbound buses to Center City Philadelphia from the airport will depart Terminal A through E at 4:59 a.m. and then every half-hour from 5:22 a.m. until 11:52 p.m.
Traffic Delays
Chester, Parkside and Brookhaven – ADA ramp construction with restrictions between 21st Street and Beachwood Road 7 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays.
Chester – Seventh Street, ADA ramp construction with lane restrictions at Highland Avenue 7 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays.
I-95 North/South – Upper Chichester, Lower Chichester, Chester, Upland, Ridley Township, Ridley Park, Tinicum, Chester -- Intelligent Transportation System Foundation installation with lane closures between Naamans Creek Road and Broad Street 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
I-476 North/South (Blue Route) – Nether Providence, Ridley Township and Springfield, ITS installation with lane closures between I-95 and U.S. Route 1, 9 p.m.-5 a.m. weekdays.
Haverford – Earlington Road, Aqua utility installation between Earlington and Covington roads 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Upper Darby – Providence Road, Aqua utility installation with lane restrictions at Sycamore Avenue 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Also, Garrett Road, PECO Energy installation between Shadeland Avenue and Riverview Road 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays through Feb. 19.
Aldan – Providence Road, Aqua utility installation with restrictions at Albert Avenue 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
Collingdale – MacDade Boulevard, borough utility installation between Felton and Roberta avenues 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays through Feb. 25.
I-95 North/South ramps to the bridge – Chester, bridge construction with 15-minute stoppages on ramps 12:01 to 5 a.m. Wednesday.
Ridley Township – Fairview Road, Aqua Pa. utility installation, closed/detoured between Sherman Avenue and Emlem Street 7 a.m.-7 p.m., with 24-hour closure, detour posted Feb. 15-26.
Chester Pike – Ridley Township and Eddystone, PECO Energy utility work between Simpson Street and Old Bullens Lane 9 a.m.-3 p.m. through Feb. 18. Work began Jan. 28.
Baltimore Pike (U.S. Route 1) – Middletown and Chester Heights, bridge replacement with lane restrictions between Darlington and Station roads, 24-hour restrictions through June 2011. Work began Oct. 12.
Road Watch appears Sundays. Only messages and mail with phone numbers will be considered. E-mail: jroman@delcotimes.com.

Road Watch…Jan. 31…
The nearly unanimous state House vote of 189-6 last week on a bill banning talking/texting on handheld cell phones while driving was nothing to sneeze at.
Even Rep. Greg Vitali, who doesn’t believe talking while driving under the influence of conversation (DUIC) usually averts your eyes from focusing on the road, came on board to make the Delco delegation’s vote all yeas.
Preoccupation is the key fact that makes DUIC such a dangerous distraction. To "preoccupy" is to dominate or engross the mind of a person, according to the dictionary.
You can be engrossed in a phone conversation and be looking out your windshield, but you still may not be paying attention to what's in your field of vision. In other words, your mind's somewhere else, get it?
It's almost like daydreaming -- deep in thought about some stressful or personal problem or future plans.
Changing the radio or defroster buttons isn't comparable. Or you can just take a sip of your coffee when you're stopped at a light.
It's not the same as PREOCCUPATION. Get it!
Hopefully, the Harrisburg honchos in the Senate, where the Republicans have the majority 30-20 – led by Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi of Chester – can also muster such bi-partisanship when their version of H.B. 2070 comes out of the Senate Transportation Committee.
After they fine tune and tweak their version – they reportedly are considering merging it with H.B. 67 which deals with distracted driving issues related to junior drivers – they could come up with this much needed state motor vehicle law that supersedes a patch quilt of local laws.
It’s long overdue to have such a law that finally addresses this major distraction of yakking on a handheld cell phone held up to one’s ear while driving with only one hand on the steering wheel.
I staunchly disagree with those who feel driving with only one hand on the wheel poses no problem in controlling a vehicle – especially if you’re on a straight-away highway like the Pennsylvania Turnpike or I-95 with no traffic lights. Can you quickly change lanes if someone darts in front of you, using only one hand on the wheel?
The fact remains that the best way to make left or right turns on local roads – especially if they’re congested – is the conventional hand-over-hand, two-handed method I was taught in driving education in high school.
Maybe before so-called “suicide” or “granny” knobs on steering wheels were outlawed, you could have some one-handed control, but one-handed turns just don’t give you complete control.
The bill passed by the state House Tuesday afternoon would impose a fine of $50 on drivers using a handheld cell phone or texting while driving as a primary offense, meaning a cop could pull you over just for this violation.
The bill applies to vehicles that are in motion and there are exceptions for calling 911 or using navigational systems. Understandably, there are also numerous exceptions for operators of emergency vehicles, volunteer emergency responders engaged in the performance of their official duties.
What’s not made really clear in the 13-page House bill is what it means “…when the vehicle is stopped due to a traffic obstruction and the motor vehicle transmission is in neutral or park.” Maybe more specific circumstances are needed in the bill.
Rep. Joe Markosek, D-Allegheny, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, the bill’s lead sponsor, returned my call Friday.
“The car has to be either out of gear or the motor shut off, then you can be on the text or whatever,” he said. “If you are just at a (traffic) light and your foot’s on the brake, that doesn’t count.”
If you’re on a highway and there’s a wreck and you’re sitting in dead traffic for two hours and shut your engine off or you put the car in park, “you can text at that point,” he said.
If you pull over and take the vehicle out of gear with the motor running and have the heater on, “you can do that,” Markosek said.
Markosek said he thinks the chances of his bill passing in the Senate are very good. “I think there’s been a dramatic change in public support for this over the last year.”
If you agree, contact your local state Senator, either Dominic Pileggi, R-9, of Chester, Edwin “Ted” Erickson, R-26, who has a Drexel Hill office, R-26, Daylin Leach, D-17, who represents Haverford and Radnor and Montco, or Anthony H. Williams, D-8, of Philadelphia, who also has an office in Yeadon.
It’s a Go for Ramp Meters
After 15 years of on- and off-again operation for those so-called ramp meters – another name for traffic lights on ramps to the Blue Route (I-476) – they will be turned on again starting Feb. 9 at 3 p.m. at three of 14 ramps. The others turn on in late February and March. So now you’ll know what those inoperable signals were there for, all this time.
Traffic Delays
Chester, Parkside and Brookhaven – ADA ramp construction with restrictions between 21st Street and Beachwood Road 7 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays.
Chester – Seventh Street, ADA ramp construction with lane restrictions at Highland Avenue 7 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays.
I-95 North/South – Upper Chichester, Lower Chichester, Chester, Upland, Ridley Township, Ridley Park, Tinicum, Chester -- Intelligent Transportation System Foundation installation with lane closures between Naamans Creek Road and Broad Street 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
I-95 North/South – Chester Township, Upland, Eddystone and Chester, ITS installation between Route 291 and Broad Street, 9 p.m.-5 a.m. weekdays.
I-476 North/South (Blue Route) – Nether Providence, Ridley Township and Springfield, ITS installation with lane closures between I-95 and U.S. Route 1, 9 p.m.-5 a.m. weekdays.
I-95 North/South ramps to the bridge – Chester, bridge construction with 15-minute stoppages on ramps 12:01 to 5 a.m. Wednesday.
Ridley Township – Fairview Road, Aqua Pa. utility installation, closed/detoured between Sherman Avenue and Emlem Street 7 a.m.-7 p.m., with 24-hour closure, detour posted Feb. 15-26.
Chester Pike – Ridley Township and Eddystone, PECO Energy utility work between Simpson Street and Old Bullens Lane 9 a.m.-3 p.m. through Feb. 18. Work began Jan. 28.
Commodore Barry Bridge West – Chester, bridge work, right lane closed on bridge, 24-hour closure through Aug. 31. Work began Dec. 14.
Baltimore Pike (U.S. Route 1) – Middletown and Chester Heights, bridge replacement with lane restrictions between Darlington and Station roads, 24-hour restrictions through June 2011. Work began Oct. 12.
Chester – Flower Street, Barry Bridge ramp construction with a new traffic pattern at Fourth Street and Second Street, 24-hour restriction, through 2011. Work began January 2009.
Chester – Norris Street, bridge ramp construction with lane restrictions at Front Street and Delaware Avenue, 24-hour restrictions through 2011. Work began January 2009.
Road Watch appears Sundays. Only messages and mail with phone numbers will be considered. E-mail: jroman@delcotimes.com.