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Safety along Route 220 corridor just a piece of 20-year transportation plan

An 8-mile stretch of Route 220 between Williamsport and Jersey Shore requires an infusion of $400 million over the next 20 years to improve safety for motorists.

That’s what officials at the Williamsport Area Transportation Study technical committee learned Monday.

But instead of blowing the budget on a single road project, albeit important, it is estimated that between $250 million and $400 million will be received from state and federal agencies through 2039, and the money needs to be distributed throughout the county for various projects, said Mark Murawski, county transportation supervisor.

“That’s the estimate for the county revenue using historical funding levels, such as grants received in the past,” Murawski said. “It’s all about grant-dependent projects and it could be anywhere on the scale of $250 million on up,” he said.

Outside of the county, and related to the city and region’s development and growth, another $700 million is needed to complete the Central Susquehanna Thruway project, linking north and south around bottlenecks at Lewisburg and Shamokin Dam.

In about seven years, the state’s plan is to have a four-lane highway without impediments to Harrisburg, Murawski said.

It also will complete the Route 15 Coalition goal set in 1988 to have a continuous four-lane highway between Maryland and New York through the state, he said.

The CSVT is expected to lead to more growth in population and coordination of business groups and landowners on economic development along Route 15 and Interstate 180, Murawski said.

The committee also listened to how the county has developed a long-range, 20-year transportation plan it is encouraging all of the residents to take a look at.

Transportation improvements from 2019 to 2022 include 71 projects with a programmed amount of $84.5 million.

That includes 26 highway-related improvement projects and 45 bridge improvement projects, according to John Lavelle, county transportation planner.

In that time, the state plans to improve Third Street in the city between Campbell Street and east to Penn Street, redo West Fourth Street, from Arch Street west to near the high school entrance, and improve the Route 220 and Route 405 intersection at Hughesville and Wolf Township.

Commentary on the long-range plan can be made until Dec. 17 when it is expected to be officially approved, Murawski said.

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