2 days ago
Route 219 project clears regulatory hurdle
SOMERSET, Pa. – Somerset County and state transportation officials received federal clearance to proceed with a preferred U.S. Route 219 path to Maryland.
The Federal Highway Administration has issued its final Environmental Impact Statement, enabling continued design work to proceed on a proposed six-mile four-lane route between Meyersdale and the Mason-Dixon Line.
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation officials previously selected the route – called 'E-Shift Modified' on preliminary documents from a list of several finalists. And Somerset County leaders have backed the plan as the most direct – and most cost-effective – path.
But plans for the path needed to complete a federal review before proceeding.
An executive summary uploaded this month to the U.S. Route 219 project's website cited the plan's limited impact to farmland, populated areas and wetlands, compared to other options. With just two new bridges planned, the route's construction will likely be $100 million cheaper.
As planned, the route will travel south of Meyersdale and veer several miles east of Salisbury Borough in Elk Lick Township before connecting to a yet-to-be-built nearly two mile link in Maryland to the Interstate 68 corridor.
The two-mile path is incorporated into the project as part of a joint effort between the states of Maryland and Pennsylvania.
The approval enables an extensive final design, right-of-way acquisitions and permitting to occur over the next several years, PennDOT officials said.
Those phases are fully funded.
But additional funding will need to be secured to complete the project's eventual construction, state and county officials have said. If all goes as planned, construction would start on the project in 2029 – and be completed in 2031.
David Hurst is a reporter for The Tribune-Democrat. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @TDDavidHurst.
