CENTRE COUNTY — The state Dept. of Transportation recently announced the following schedule of maintenance activities in Centre County for this week. PennDOT performs year-round maintenance in its mission to provide a safe, efficient transportation system.
Joint and Crack Seal & Hot Pour Mastic
- Route 3040 (Plank/South Eagle Vally Road/Union Street) between the Blair-Centre County line in Taylor Township and Railroad Avenue in Huston Township through Friday, Sept. 11.
Paving
- Route 3009 (Branch Road) between Route 3016 (Woodside Drive) in College Township and Route 45 in Harris Township through Friday, Sept. 11.
- Route 3032 (Beaver Road) between Shirk Road and Beaver Meadow Trail in Rush Township through Friday, Sept. 11.
Pipe Replacing & Cleaning
- Route 3003 (Bernel Road) between Route 550 and Route 3005 (Fox Hill Road) in Patton Township through Friday, Sept. 11.
Side Dozing
- Route 322 between Route 53 in Decatur Township and Interstate 99 (I-99) in Worth Township through Friday, Sept. 11.
Vegetation Management
- I-99 between mile markers 55 and 73 through Friday, Sept.11.
Musser Lane Closure
PennDOT also recently announced that the contractor for its High-Speed Interchange project between I-80 and I-99 closed the intersection of Musser Lane on Tuesday, Sept. 8, as it begins building a temporary roadway for use in future traffic control. This work is part of the larger project to enhance traffic safety by providing a direct connection between the two Interstates, making it unnecessary to travel along Route 26 to access them and alleviating congestion.
Starting Tuesday, access to Musser Lane from I-99 northbound and southbound was closed. Musser Lane will remain open, but it will only be accessible by exiting I-99 at exit 83/Zion-Bellefonte and following Route 550 to Musser Lane. PennDOT expects the intersection to remain closed for the remainder of the 2026 construction season.
Work on this contract includes building the interchange, ten bridges, four retaining walls, five box culverts, seven sign structures, and three changeable message boards. It also includes constructing new and rebuilding existing roadways and ramps, drainage improvements, installing Intelligent Transportation System devices, guide rail and highway lighting, pavement marking, stream improvements, and miscellaneous construction. Work will continue through the next five construction seasons, ending in 2030. Trumbull Corporation of Pittsburgh is the contractor on this $259 million project. Approximately $170 million of the funding comes from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Bill.
The high-speed interchange is one phase of a three-phase project. The first involved the construction of the local access interchange at mile marker 163, which provided direct access between Route 26 and I-80 for local traffic. Construction on that phase took place over three construction seasons between 2020 and 2022. The contract value was $52 million. That phase benefited from a $35 million federal Infrastructure for Rebuilding America grant.
The other ongoing phase will reconstruct and widen Route 26 to maintain and support the state roadway network. It will feature 11-foot travel lanes and 4-foot shoulders. Excavation work for that project started in November 2024 and construction will be completed this summer.
Completing all three phases will support the regional freight economy and improve the reliability of roadway travel throughout the region.
