​Closure due to paving operations on I-81

Harrisburg, PA – Motorists in Cumberland County are advised a rest area on southbound Interstate 81 will be closed this Thursday night so a PennDOT contractor can pave the southbound I-81 mainline and shoulder. The rest area, which is located between Exit 44 (Route 465/Allen Road) and Exit 37 (Route 233/Newville), will be closed from 7 PM Thursday, August 27, to 6 AM Friday, August 28.

The next available rest area is located about 50 miles south of the closed facility.

Weather permitting, the facility will be closed again during the same hours on Thursday, September 3, so the contractor can continue paving operations at that location.

This work is part of a 10.5-mile project on I-81 in Cumberland County. The $14,770,419 contract was awarded to New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co., Inc., of the Village of New Enterprise, Bedford County, and includes on and off ramp resurfacing, roadway base replacement, full-width milling of the top layer of asphalt, resurfacing the interstate with a 2.5-inch Superpave warm mix asphalt overlay, and installation of Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) equipment such as a Dynamic Message Sign (DMS) along the northbound lanes at mile marker 26 and six closed-circuit television video cameras.

The contract also calls for the installation of guide rail throughout the project limits and cable median barrier in the middle portion of the project. The cable median barrier connects to the barrier already installed on the northern and southern sections of the project. Work under this construction contract is scheduled to be completed by February of 2021.

This section of I-81 averages more than 46,700 vehicles traveled daily.

Motorists are reminded to be alert for these operations, to obey work zone signs, and to slow down when approaching and traveling through work zones for their safety as well as for the safety of the road crews.

Work on this project will be in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and state Department of Health guidance as well as a project-specific COVID-19 safety plan, which will include protocols for social distancing, use of face coverings, personal and job-site cleaning protocols, management of entries to the jobsite, and relevant training.

For more information on projects occurring or being bid this year, those made possible by or accelerated by the state transportation funding plan (Act 89), or those on the department’s Four and Twelve Year Plans, visit www.projects.penndot.gov.

Subscribe to PennDOT news in Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry, and York counties at www.penndot.gov/District8.

Motorists can check conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information, and access to more than 950 traffic cameras, 103 of which are in the Midstate.

511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional twitter alerts accessible on the 511PA website.

MEDIA CONTACT: Dave Thompson, 717-787-1446