PennDOT to replace bridge near Cowans Gap State Park

Chambersburg Public Opinion

McCONNELLSBURG -- The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation plans to replace a bridge on Augwick Road in Todd Township, Fulton County.

Bridge construction is set for Fort McCord Road in Hamilton Township, Franklin COunty.

Construction will close a section of the road north of Cowans Gap State Park for two weeks. Motorists will have a 29-mile detour.

PennDOT also is taking a larger right of way from the Buchanan State Forest for the bridge over the Little Augwick Creek located about two miles north of the state park.

PennDOT will host an open house about the project from 6 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday in the Todd Township Municipal Building, 2998 East Dutch Corner Road. PennDOT representatives and the project team will answer questions and receive comments regarding the project. Plans will be displayed.

The Highland Avenue Reconstruction Project is underway at Highland Avenue, between South Fourth Street and Blanchard Avenue, and will construct concrete curbs and repave the street. The work is expected to be finished by October 14.

Anyone with knowledge of historic resources in the project area should attend the meeting, according to a PennDOT spokesman.

Bids are to be opened in about one year. Construction should start in October 2019.

The closure will be limited to 14 days. The official detour will take motorists from Aughwick Road to Grist Mill Road to U.S. 522 to U.S. 30 and back to Aughwick Road.

PennDOT needs to acquire about a tenth of an acre from the state forest for a permanent right of way. The project will not adversely affect activities of the features of the state forest, according to PennDOT.