JACKSON TOWNSHIP -- The natural gas industry is expected to start repairs this week on a crumbling road in Susquehanna County, according to PennDOT.
Forget about staying in your lane along Route 547 between Gibson and New Milford.
In some spots one lane of travel is pretty much gone, just crumbled away during the recent freezes and thaws.
“You dodge them and you watch for cars!”
And not only cars but all the trucks related to the natural gas industry. We saw a caravan of five trucks hauling water pass by the worst stretch of Route 547. They, too, had to drive on the wrong side of the road and not just on straight stretches.
Maxine Gunn lives there and drives it daily.
“You take your life in your hands. Hopefully when they're all done with the fracking, they'll repave the roads,” Gunn said.
PennDOT says all the truck traffic is contributing to the problems and that Cabot Oil and Gas is offering to fix it, possibly starting repairs this week.
The road itself is just falling apart, and there are similar spots in dozens of places.
“It's definitely the worst I've seen in Pennsylvania,” said Laura Johnson.
“We were on our way to veterinary calls and we're just shocked at the roads,” added Ellen Johnson.
Ellen and Laura Johnson realized quickly this is dangerous, especially in spots where the part of the road is gone, right on a curve.
“It's hard to stay on your own side of the road, and going around the corner, it's hard to see anybody else is coming, I'm just hoping there's not an accident,” Laura Johnson said.
Drivers are finding the tough travel goes on for miles, a combination of weather conditions and truck traffic that has really turned much of the road to rubble.
“Falling apart, very difficult to drive, big gouges out of it and deterioration, erosion is really remarkable,” Ellen Johnson said.
PennDOT says that Cabot Oil and Gas plans to start making repairs this week. The gas company is voluntarily offering to fix Route 547 in Susquehanna County.