Closure set to begin on Route 981 in Mt. Pleasant Township

Motorists on Route 981 in Mt. Pleasant Township can expect traffic interruptions on Wednesday, followed by closure of a section of the road beginning on Thursday.

PennDOT said the road will be closed from Boyer Road south to Fiedors Grove Road, just south of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, as construction continues on the Laurel Valley Transportation Improvement Project. The closure is expected to continue through Aug. 24 as crews from contractor Walsh Construction Company perform work on Route 981 and on a turnpike maintenance access road.

Traffic will be redirected along a posted detour following Kecksburg Road and routes 982, 31 and 819. On Wednesday, flaggers will control alternating single-lane traffic on Route 981 as construction crews move into place.

The work is part of the first of three phases of the $55.2 million project. The project is meant to improve safety and traffic flow along the Route 981 corridor between Mt. Pleasant and Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity, through realignment of several sections, widening of others and reconfiguration of some intersections.

Work on the first phase, from the intersection of Route 819 north to the village of Calumet in Mt. Pleasant Township, is expected to continue through September 2024. It involves construction of roundabout intersections where Route 981 meets Route 819, State Street and multiple roads that converge in the village of Norvelt.

A section of Route 981 is being shifted to the west between a point north of the turnpike and a point just south of the intersection of Walton’s Lane. Clearance below the turnpike is being improved. In Norvelt, the route will shift to follow a former trolley line.