PA 88 (Northbound and Southbound) CMAQ Traffic Signal and ADA Design, 1st Street to 13th Street

Pennsylvania (PA) 88’s Northbound (McKean Avenue) and Southbound (Fallowfield Avenue) roadways are a regional arterial corridor within the business district of the Charleroi Borough. The corridor’s existing traffic signals are approximately 30 to 35 years old; operate in an isolated, fixed‐time mode; lack emergency vehicle pre‐emption; and are in a state of disrepair. In conjunction with the Charleroi Borough, District 12 of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) has initiated a project to reconstruct the corridor, replace/remove 15 traffic signals, and upgrade ADA curb ramps to meet current standards. The project is part of the federally funded Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Improvement Program designed to improve air quality by providing localized congestion relief, operational improvements, corridor mode shifts, and direct emissions reduction. Lochner is developing an alternatives analysis as well as providing preliminary engineering, final design, and construction consultation services.

During the alternatives analysis, Lochner is evaluating minimizing unnecessary delays and maintenance costs by reducing the number of traffic signals on the corridor. The team is collecting traffic data and performing timing analyses for each intersection to better understand the existing congestion, queuing, and safety issues of PA 88. Lochner is proposing traffic signals that include vehicle detection, ADA accommodation, uninterruptible power supply, emergency vehicle pre‐emption, railroad pre‐emption (for the 8th street intersection), and new GPS‐equipped controller cabinets. The goal of Lochner’s proposed signal system timings will be to reduce congestion, improve traffic flow, and decrease travel time, and reduce stops. The team is also investigating the creation of a closed loop signal system for the traffic signals on northbound and southbound PA 88.

Additionally, Lochner’s improvements include enhancing signing and pavement markings as well as implementing ADA accessibility improvements. New curb extensions would accommodate curb ramps at intersections, improve motorists’ visibility of crossing pedestrians, and reduce pedestrians’ cross travel times. They would also more clearly delineate parking areas, provide better sight distance, provide the required clearance for utility poles, and provide a calming effect in areas where signals have been removed. Traffic calming would also be achieved by incorporating optical speed bars. At intersections with high pedestrian activity, cross walk hawks would provide a system to alert drivers of crossing pedestrians. For intersections with a history of rear collision accidents, skid resistance would be enhanced using high‐friction surface methods.