RIDGWAY – The North Central Pennsylvania Regional Planning and
Development Commission’s Rural Area Transportation Planning Board
on Tuesday heard updates on various projects across the six-county
region, including an increase in discretionary funding for the U.S.
Route 219 Bradford Bypass project.

The board also discussed funding problems for the Impact
Bradford project’s proposed relocation of utility lines
underground.

According to Pennsylvania Department of Transportation planning
specialist Harold Nanovic, an additional $6 million more in
discretionary “spike” funding will be allocated for not only the
Bradford Bypass project, but a similar one taking place around
Johnsonburg.

PennDOT receives the funding, which is derived from the state’s
federal highway allocations and is awarded to projects above the
state’s transportation budget. The funding is handed out at the
discretion of the governor and transportation secretary.

In April, PennDOT officials announced the second phase of the
Bradford Bypass project – from just above Kendall Avenue to the New
York state line – could be delayed a year due to a loss in
discretionary funding, adding that segment of the $55 million
highway reconstruction project by Mascaro Construction Co. of
Pittsburgh had been taken off the agency’s draft 2007
Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).

The project was slated to be let out to bid in December of 2007.
At that time, PennDOT officials insisted the project was still on
the drawing board and would be completed as soon as funding became
available.

Work on the rest of the project has been under way for several
weeks.

Meanwhile, the $35 million Johnsonburg Bypass project was not
scheduled to be affected by the prior decrease in transportation
funding, according to PennDOT officials.

The project includes routing traffic around the center of the
borough, particularly near the Weyerhaeuser paper mill, and over
the Clarion River in an effort to alleviate truck traffic through
the area. Work on that project has also begun.

In other news, officials heard about an apparent problem with
funding for the Impact Bradford project.

Officials said the local committee approved $250,000 for the
project, but felt that relocating utilities underground was not an
eligible expense. The state received the same application and
provided $750,000, which included the relocation fees.

“I don’t know what’s going on with the $750,000,” North Central
Transportation Planning Director Amy Kessler said. “I cannot
confirm there’s $1 million (in funding), I can only confirm
$250,000.”

Gov. Ed Rendell’s office announced in May that both Impact
Bradford and the Main Street Streetscape Project combined would
received $1 million for community improvements, including the
relocation of overhead utility lines above Boylston and Kennedy
streets underground.

A committee of volunteers has been advising on the project and
urged the Bradford Office of Economic and Community Development to
try and get the money to move the wires.

Other enhancements to various buildings in that area is also
part of the overall project.

Also, Area Transportation Authority Chief Financial Officer
Colette Orioso told the board that a lack of funding is hurting
that agency’s ability to serve the public.

“We face, as many other public transit systems in the state, a
funding crisis,” Orioso said, adding the agency’s budget is
balanced, but there is inadequate funding for any capital
projects.

Funding isn’t ATA’s only concern, according to Orioso, who said
there is a serious lack of American made vehicles for purchase.
They currently use an Orion bus, which is handicap accessible, but
it is no longer available to buy.

She added Daimler Chrysler quit manufacturing the Orion bus
because it competed with a product Chrysler manufactures in Europe.
While ATA has the largest fleet of these buses in this part of the
country, it isn’t large enough to gain the attention of the
manufacturer.

Orioso also gave updates on ATA’s future projects, which include
terminals in Bradford, St. Marys, Coudersport, Emporium, DuBois,
Punxsutawney and Clearfield.

Plans are to have the terminals completed in the next seven to
10 years, Orioso said. There are no firm dates for the projects to
begin. ð

Kessler said that the entire plan will be put out for public
comment for the next 30 days. A public meeting will be held at
10:30 a.m. July 12 at the North Central building to receive
comments about the plan.

From there, the committee will meet July 18 to approve the plan.
It will then go before the North Central executive board for its
approval on July 26. Officials said Aug. 1 is the deadline for the
plan to be in Harrisburg.

The next meeting of the Rural Area Transportation Planning Board
is slated for 12:30 p.m. Monday at the North Central building. This
will be a long range transportation process meeting.