- A stretch of Wood Avenue will be closed starting Tuesday in order to allow for some much-needed rehabilitation
- A nearly $1.8 million agreement with Grace Industries will fund the improvements, including new ramps and traffic-calming islands
- Officials have said most of the project will be finished by the end of the year, though completion may have to wait until spring 2024
EASTON, Pa. — Easton will launch the first phase of a much-needed rehabilitation for Wood Avenue starting Tuesday, with estimates of about three weeks of road closures forecasted.
According to information provided by the city, Wood Avenue will remain closed between North 12th and North Warren streets day and night beginning on Sept. 5, with the first phase projected to last around three weeks.
In July, the city approved a $1,795,577.02 agreement with Grace Industries to spruce up the otherwise neglected Wood Avenue, which has seen little to no maintenance over the past few decades.
“The road has existed since the ‘50s, with really very little work, and we took it back from PennDOT in order to make the improvements."David Hopkins, acting city administrator during July/August 2023
“The road has existed since the ‘50s, with really very little work, and we took it back from PennDOT in order to make the improvements,” David Hopkins, serving as acting city administrator at the time, said.
“We felt that at some point, they really didn’t have a plan to improve the road, so we took it back to make the improvements. You have to have a good foundation for anything above it, so all the existing concrete will get repaired, and that will get paved over."
Funding for the project was taken from grants, including $1.1 million from the state Transportation Department’s High Transfer “Turnback” Program, along with $450,000 from PennDOT’s Multimodal Transportation Fund, and matching funds from Lafayette College.
Improvements to the stretch of Wood Avenue include Americans With Disabilities ramps, traffic-calming islands, direction conversions for the unit block of Wood Avenue and Church Street, and new geometry for the intersection of Church, Seventh and Prospect streets.
In addition, the intersection of Church, Seventh and Prospect streets, which Hopkins characterized as “confusing” because of two stop signs, will be addressed during the work. In lieu of the double stop, Hopkins said “we took a lot of real estate with curb bump-outs, and we T-ed it off, a common tactic to increase traffic safety."
As for those proposed islands, some may even include green spaces, which, while difficult to maintain, Hopkins said “we think it’s worth it, and we think this major thoroughfare through this neighborhood could use it."
Officials figured the project would get off the ground by the end of the summer, though completion may have to wait until spring 2024.
