Clearfield, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) alerted drivers that there will be a series of 15-minute traffic stoppages on Interstate 80 (I-80) eastbound and westbound next week while the contractor for its High-Speed Interchange project between Interstates 80 and 99 (I-99) completes blasting for excavation purposes. This work is part of the larger project to enhance traffic safety by providing a direct connection between the two Interstates, making it unnecessary to travel along Route 26 to access them and alleviating congestion.
PennDOT expects the stoppages to happen sporadically during daylight hours on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Drivers are urged to watch for slow movement or stopped vehicles through the work zone, to obey posted speed limit and work zone signage and to always buckle up. The contractor will allow the traffic backlog to clear before each series of blasts.
Additionally, drivers are reminded that exit 161/Bellefonte along I-80 eastbound is set to close for nine days starting at 6:00 PM Sunday, August 23. While the exit is closed, eastbound traffic will use the crossover lane at mile marker 159.2 to travel across the median onto I-80 westbound. Drivers wishing to access I-99 southbound will continue to exit 163/Jacksonville-Howard and then follow I-80 westbound back to the Bellefonte exit. Traffic from I-99 northbound wishing to access I-80 eastbound will first take I-80 westbound to exit 158/Milesburg, take that exit, and merge onto I-80 eastbound from there.
This closure allows the contractor to replace a box culvert. Crews will work around the clock during this nine-day closure to complete that work. Once the box culvert is replaced, the exit will reopen during daylight hours but close overnight for the remainder of the 2026 construction season.
Work on this contract includes building the interchange, ten bridges, four retaining walls, five box culverts, seven sign structures, and three changeable message boards. It also includes constructing new and rebuilding existing roadways and ramps, drainage improvements, installing Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) devices, guide rail and highway lighting, pavement marking, stream improvements, and miscellaneous construction. Work will continue through the next five construction seasons, ending in 2030. Trumbull Corporation of Pittsburgh, PA, is the contractor on this $259 million project. Approximately $170 million of the funding comes from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).
The high-speed interchange is one phase of a three-phase project. The first involved the construction of the local access interchange at mile marker 163, which provided direct access between Route 26 and I-80 for local traffic. Construction on that phase took place over three construction seasons between 2020 and 2022. The contract value was $52 million. That phase benefited from a $35 million federal Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant.
The other ongoing phase will reconstruct and widen Route 26 to maintain and support the state roadway network. It will feature 11-foot travel lanes and 4-foot shoulders. Excavation work for that project started in November 2024 and construction will be completed this summer.
Completing all three phases will support the regional freight economy and improve the reliability of roadway travel throughout the region.
Travelers can check conditions on major roads by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 1,200 traffic cameras. 511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional X alerts.
Find PennDOT’s planned and active construction projects at www.pa.gov/DOTprojects. Subscribe to PennDOT news and find transportation results in Cameron, Centre, Clearfield, Clinton, Elk, Juniata, McKean, Mifflin, and Potter counties at www.pa.gov/DOTdistrict2.
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MEDIA CONTACT: Timothy Nebgen, tnebgen@pa.gov or 814-765-0598
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