Mon-Fayette Expressway

[NE2]

Isn't there still a piece under construction west of Uniontown?

[rickmastfan67]

Isn't there still a piece under construction west of Uniontown?

Yep.  The Brownsville bypass which I put in the correct alignment awhile ago in OSM.

[MASTERNC]

Someone did post Youtube videos of the new section of road

Southbound

Northbound

Sadly, I guess either WV law doesn't allow for non-Interstate limited access highways to be signed for 70 MPH or the road was too short to qualify.

[hbelkins]

Probably to match up with Pennsylvania's 65 mph limit. I can't think of any other non-interstate freeway in West Virginia other than US 22, and I can't remember what the speed limit is on it.

Wish the YouTube videographer above had driven on down to I-68.

[PAHighways]

The videographer should have waited a day for the front to move through as the southbound clip looks more like storm chasing footage.

[rickmastfan67]

I'm curious, has anybody been along the PA-88 (currently) segment of the Mon-Fayette recently?  I want to know if I have the correct traffic pattern in OSM right now.
http://www.openstreetmap.org/?lat=40.02798&lon=-79.92901&zoom=15&layers=M

From the looks of the pictures on the PTC website, it seems the traffic pattens are back to "normal" on the mainline, but I'd prefer somebody who's been down there recently to comment on this before I go and fix up the area in OSM.

[PAHighways]

The rehab project on the PA 88 section is still taking place from the cloverleaf south and traffic is back to using both sides but with single lane closures in each direction.

There are no signals on 40 anymore nor a crossover on 43 at the cloverleaf, and the southeast loop is now reopened along with the ramp that carries 88 northbound, but the ramp from 40 westbound to 43 northbound is closed.

[Mr_Northside]

Someone did post Youtube videos of the new section of road
*referencing the signs at the state line*

I get that (in PA) it's a Pa Turnpike road.  And the PA TPK mainline is considered "America's First Superhighway".

But the signs on 43 have no business having "America's First Superhighway" on them.

[PAHighways]

The PTC likes to use the "Pennsylvania Turnpike" branding, even if the road isn't actually the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

There are white-on-green "PENNA TURNPIKE" shields along 376 and "PENNSYLVANIA TURNPIKE" is on the mainline toll plaza building on 66.

[MASTERNC]

Wish the YouTube videographer above had driven on down to I-68.

Agreed.  However, if you search on Flickr, there are some photos of the section between the Cheat Lake exit and I-68 in both directions.

[rickmastfan67]

The rehab project on the PA 88 section is still taking place from the cloverleaf south and traffic is back to using both sides but with single lane closures in each direction.

There are no signals on 40 anymore nor a crossover on 43 at the cloverleaf, and the southeast loop is now reopened along with the ramp that carries 88 northbound, but the ramp from 40 westbound to 43 northbound is closed.

Alright, thanks for letting me know.   But I'll hold off on making the changes till Monday if possible since right now there is a bug in the MapQuest Open directions that they are trying to figure out why it's happening.

[NE2]

Alright, thanks for letting me know.   But I'll hold off on making the changes till Monday if possible since right now there is a bug in the MapQuest Open directions that they are trying to figure out why it's happening.

I bet it assumes a short piece of non-motorway between two motorways is a bug, since this usually happens when a median crossover is not tagged access=*.

[Alps]

Motorway? This is Pennsylvania, not Kensington

[rickmastfan67]

Alright, thanks for letting me know.   But I'll hold off on making the changes till Monday if possible since right now there is a bug in the MapQuest Open directions that they are trying to figure out why it's happening.

I bet it assumes a short piece of non-motorway between two motorways is a bug, since this usually happens when a median crossover is not tagged access=*.

If that was the case, it wouldn't work in the other direction.

[NE2]

Oh hmmm. However it won't let you turn left onto the ramp to 43 north, so somehow that intersection is a no-man's land.

Could it be that their directions database has a different date from their rendering database? See here: http://mapq.st/oDLLgy

(By the way, how do you move an endpoint? In Firefox when I drag it, a black line appears between the new location and the old one, but nothing changes in the route.)

[rickmastfan67]

Could it be that their directions database has a different date from their rendering database?

I asked them that on Twitter and they said that the directions are still updating.

(By the way, how do you move an endpoint? In Firefox when I drag it, a black line appears between the new location and the old one, but nothing changes in the route.)

You have to hit the "X" in the directions area and delete one point and then add a new point.  This is one thing Google does better I have to admit.

[froggie]

Note there is a nice photo taken about 2 miles north of I-68 as the northbound side descends from a hill.

(also at 3:38 in the southbound video)  The road on the far right was a vantage point during last month's Morgantown road meet.

The videographer should have waited a day for the front to move through as the southbound clip looks more like storm chasing footage.

Not really.  Just looks like someone driving through rain.

[DeaconG]

So when are they gonna finish that final piece in the Pittsburgh metro area?  Never?

Note to PennDOT: Don't start something you can't finish.  Ending at PA 51 blows.

[qguy]

Note to PennDOT: Don't start something you can't finish.  Ending at PA 51 blows.

Note to DeaconG: Don't look at us. PennDOT is not building the Mon-Fayette Expressway; the PA Turnpike Commission is.  --PennDOT

Fixed quote. - rmf67

[DeaconG]

Note to PennDOT: Don't start something you can't finish.  Ending at PA 51 blows.

Note to DeaconG: Don't look at us. PennDOT is not building the Mon-Fayette Expressway; the PA Turnpike Commission is.  --PennDOT

Fixed quote. - rmf67

Somebody still needs to be slapped.  Hard.  "Oh, dearie, maybe some enterprising private company will come along with 600 million1.5 billion to help us finish this thing!"  Maybe if they were to get off their fixation on slip ramps everywhere and get this done (along with the I-95 interchange) I might have some more respect for 'em.

Sigh.  Who am I kidding?

[PAHighways]

The videographer should have waited a day for the front to move through as the southbound clip looks more like storm chasing footage.

Not really.  Just looks like someone driving through rain.

Precisely why I said they should have waited a day, then the footage wouldn't have been marred by raindrops on the windshield.

[PAHighways]

Mon-Fayette Road Project Slowed by Lack of Funds - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

[rickmastfan67]

The rehab project on the PA 88 section is still taking place from the cloverleaf south and traffic is back to using both sides but with single lane closures in each direction.

There are no signals on 40 anymore nor a crossover on 43 at the cloverleaf, and the southeast loop is now reopened along with the ramp that carries 88 northbound, but the ramp from 40 westbound to 43 northbound is closed.

Just updated OSM. (Is the PA-88 alignment after leaving the Mon-Fayette correct?  And has PA Turnpike 43 been co-signed with it on that section yet?)

One more question Jeff.  Did they get permission to add toll booths on the PA-88 ramps, or will that section (US-40 > PA-88) remain toll free?

[PAHighways]

PA Turnpike 43 hasn't been signed on the former PA 88 expressway as of yet, but with the project winding down, they'll be sure to appear.

The PTC wants to put toll plazas on the southbound off/northbound on ramps at the former end of the expressway, but only dependent on an agreement between the PTC, PennDOT, and FHWA.  There was no indication of plaza construction back in December when we stopped down there during SWPA Meet tour.

If the plazas are agreed upon, I would not be surprised if PA 88 goes back to its original route through West Brownsville.

[PAHighways]

I had written an entry about the event, but finally got around to uploading the picture of the ribbon-cutting on our side of the Mason-Dixon Line for my website's blog.