SOUTH WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A major Lehigh Valley road project will see a ramp closed and traffic detoured in coming days.
According to the state Transportation Department, the Route 309/Tilghman Street interchange project will shutter the 309 South ramp to Tilghman Street East beginning Tuesday, Aug. 19.
An estimated end date for the work is Monday, Sept. 1, a release said Friday.
Detoured traffic during the ramp closure will continue on Route 309 to the Interstate 78 merge to Route 222 to Route 309 North to the Tilghman Street East exit.
Rain is not expected to cause delays or alter the scheduling of the construction, PennDOT said.
A major project underway
The work is part of a massive project to change the short, tight cloverleaf ramps where drivers had little space to change speeds and merge on and off the highway.
Prior to construction, the area was one of the most crash-prone locations in the region, with a PennDOT database of crashes showing 42 accidents on the interchange in 2023, the most recent year of data available.
PennDOT kicked off the $91.6 million reconstruction of the interchange last September, but the heavy work didn’t begin until this past spring.
Overall, the interchange project calls for longer acceleration and deceleration ramps, replacing two overpasses and reprogramming stop lights on Tilghman Street to better coordinate traffic.
Check traffic conditions
Motorists can check conditions on state roadways by visiting 511pa.com, which is free and available 24 hours a day, providing traffic delay warnings, traffic speed information and access to more than 1,000 traffic cameras.
511PA also is available through a smartphone app for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1 or by following local alerts on X.
News on Lehigh Valley roadway projects can be found at www.penndot.pa.gov/District5, with information on planned and active projects at www.projects.penndot.gov.
