Northumberland detour has locals upset
NORTHUMBERLAND – Day one of a three year project in Northumberland could have gone better. At one intersection, neighbors apparently removed a covering on a stop sign, elsewhere some utility wires were brought down, and police were citing trucks violating a ban on vehicles over 36’ in length.
PennDOT’s Duke Street/Route 147 detour sends northbound traffic through neighborhoods on King Street, and southbound traffic uses a section of Queen Street. The $13 million project involves rebuilding sections of Duke, Water and Front Streets, which carry Route 11 and Route 147. Some stop signs are covered on the route, and there are parking restrictions.
Police tell us, neighbors or someone else, uncovered a stop sign at Fourth and King Street. Police chief Cliff Kriner said the sign had been covered to allow traffic to turn without stopping, but at some point, the cover was gone, and neither police nor PennDOT said they removed it.
Complaints were common about trucks on local streets, vehicles going too fast on the route, and many vehicles off the detour or going the wrong way. Kriner said he did do some truck law enforcement and more was likely today. He noted that a truck brought down utility wires in one neighborhood.
PennDOT says the current detour will last two weeks, but more detours will continue this summer and next summer. PennDOT says all businesses are accessible and Route 147 is always open, during the project.
