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Scranton Beltway hearings set for November in Lackawanna, Luzerne counties

Signs on the electronic toll booths indicate to motorists entering the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Gibsonia, Pa. on Monday, Aug. 30, 2021, to keep moving and the methods being used to collect tolls. More than $104 million in Pennsylvania Turnpike tolls went uncollected last year as the agency fully converted to all-electronic tolling. Turnpike records show the millions of motorists who don’t use E-ZPass have a nearly 1 in 2 chance of riding without paying under the “toll-by-plate” license plate reader system.
Keith Srakocic
/
Associated Press
Public hearings have been scheduled for next month in Lackawanna and Luzerne counties to give residents an opportunity to speak about the Scranton Beltway project that would provide high-speed connector lanes between I-81 and I-476 at the Wyoming Valley and Clarks Summit interchanges.

Public hearings have been scheduled for next month in Lackawanna and Luzerne counties to give residents an opportunity to speak about the Scranton Beltway Project.

First proposed in 2018, the project would provide high-speed connections between Interstate 81 and Interstate 476 — also known as the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike — at the Clarks Summit interchange in Lackawanna County and at the Wyoming Valley interchange in Luzerne County.

It is expected to cost at least $236 million with construction tentatively set for 2029-2032.

The hearing schedule is as follows:

  • Nov. 13 - Wyoming Valley public hearing
    Pittston Area High School
    5 Stout St., Yatesville

    Registration/plans display: 4:30 p.m.
    Public testimony: 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

  • Nov. 14 - Clarks Summit public hearing
    Abington Heights High School
    222 Noble Road, Clarks Summit

    Registration/Plans Display: 4:30 p.m.
    Public Testimony: 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Project background

As previously reported, the project would give drivers the opportunity to make high-speed connector lanes between I-81 and I-476 more smoothly than they can now.

Planners have said that might help reduce congestion on I-81, which carries about 70,000 vehicles each day between Pittston and Clarks Summit, while only 10,000 to 11,000 vehicles travel the Turnpike between those two points daily. Officials have said they could shift as many as 25,000 vehicles per day to I-476 under the plan.

While motorists would have to pay tolls on I-476, using the Turnpike would save them time over sitting in traffic on I-81 through the Scranton area, officials have said.

However, the project is not without controversy, as construction will require the Turnpike Commission to demolish six homes and acquire easements touching at least a dozen other properties.

Critics also have questioned whether the cost of Turnpike tolls would continue to dissuade motorists from using the road.

The 16-mile trip between the Wyoming Valley and Clarks Summit interchanges costs $3 with EZ-Pass and $6.40 without it at the current rates. But the Turnpike has increased tolls for 16 consecutive years through 2024, and due to financial obligations appears likely to continue doing so.

How to participate and comment

The hearings will be conducted by The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in coordination with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) as part of a required 30-day comment period on an Environmental Assessment (EA) of the project.

Turnpike officials said the EA is expected to be made public on Oct. 28, and links to the document will be posted online at that time. The EA public comment period will be open from Oct. 28 until Dec. 6.

The public hearings will offer attendees the opportunity to provide feedback on the project in the form of official testimony.

That testimony will be transcribed and then included in the EA Report. Those providing testimony are asked to register in advance by calling 215-922-8081 ext. 1678 or emailing scrantonbeltway@paturnpike.com. Registration for testimony will also be available at the hearing.

Oral testimony will be limited to five minutes per participant, and the number of slots will depend on available time.

Individuals also may provide testimony privately in a separate hearing room with a stenographer, Turnpike officials said.

For those who do not wish to provide oral testimony, written comments may be submitted by mail or email to:

Larry Mitros, PE, Deputy Project Manager
Urban Engineers, Inc.
530 Walnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19106

Email: scrantonbeltway@paturnpike.com

All written comments must be postmarked by Dec. 6. Written comments also may be brought to the in-person public hearings and deposited in a comment box.

The public can access the comment form online during the public comment period beginning on Oct. 28 at this page.

Additional details are included in the official Turnpike Commission release below.

Full details about the upcoming Scranton Beltway hearing process were released this week by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.
Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission
Full details about the upcoming Scranton Beltway hearing process were released this week by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.

Roger DuPuis joins WVIA News from the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader. His 24 years of experience in journalism, as both a reporter and editor, included several years at The Scranton Times-Tribune. His beat assignments have ranged from breaking news, local government and politics, to business, healthcare, and transportation. He has a lifelong interest in urban transit, particularly light rail, and authored a book about Philadelphia's trolley system.

You can email Roger at rogerdupuis@wvia.org
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