DUNMORE, Pa. — People who showed up at the Dunmore Elementary Center had many questions for PennDOT.
Officials outlined the plan to expand Interstate 81 to three lanes in each direction from the Avoca exit to just Beyond the Joseph Biden Expressway; that's a stretch of about seven miles.
The timeline for this project is about 10 years and would bring several changes to the roadways, entrances, and exits on Interstate 81 in the Scranton area.
"This project should have been done 30 years ago. We should be looking at four lanes, not three. We should be looking at more sound barriers," said Eric Skurka, Moosic.
"I hope they aren't giving us fibs about stuff that what we are told they will follow up on," added Tony Ranella of Dunmore.
Ranella says while he might not be around to see the end of construction, he does not want any of the area's history to be lost in the process.
"If it wasn't for the Pennsylvania coal, I wouldn't be here. So it's in my blood, and I do not wanna see anymore of the gravity railroad destroyed," he said.
With the expansion come changes to entrance and exit ramps, something Cathy and Joe Wechsler of East Mountain in Scranton say is a much-needed improvement.
"The one thing that I did like was removing the 81 north ramp that you get on at River Street. It's very dangerous there," Joe said.
"The same with the entrance ramp to 81 south right there on River Street, it makes it, it makes it very difficult," added Cathy.
Paul Hart of Scranton remembers the last time work was done on this part of Interstate 81.
"When I was in high school, college is when they built this section originally, and they really haven't done any significant work to it since. It's long overdue and needed. It's just a shame it's going to take it so long to get it finished," Hart said.
PennDOT expects to have more public meetings about the project.
Right now, construction is not expected to start until the spring of 2028; that's five years from now.
After that, it's expected to take another five years to complete.
For a look at what the specific changes will be to this stretch of Interstate 81, click here.
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