C  O  M  M  I  S  S  I  O  N       N  E  W  S       R  E  L  E  A  S  E

Contact:  

Carl DeFebo  717-939-9551, extension 2934 

May 11, 2000

URGENT TRAVEL ADVISORY
Pa. Turnpike Plans Early Morning Shutdown 
During Demolition of Somerset County Bridges

The Pennsylvania Turnpike will be completely shutdown for approximately four hours between Interchange 10 (Somerset) and Interchange 11 (Bedford) in the early morning on Sunday, May 14.

Westbound motorists will be detoured off the Turnpike at the Bedford Interchange beginning at 1 a.m., and eastbound motorists will be detoured off the Turnpike at the Somerset Interchange beginning at 1:40 a.m.

The shutdown — during which construction crews will remove steel girders from two overhead bridges that are being razed — will be in effect until 5 a.m.

Exiting motorists will receive an alternate-route card — featuring directions to get back onto the Turnpike — from a collector at the tollbooth.

Although access to and from the Somerset service plazas will be prohibited during this time, all services will remain in operation during the shutdown for customers who wish to wait in the plazas.

The bridges are being demolished and replaced as part of a total roadway reconstruction project that is scheduled to begin in that area this summer.

Motorists travelling on this part of the Turnpike are urged to use caution and remain alert for sudden traffic stoppages.

###

 P.O. Box 67676, Harrisburg, PA 17106-7676         Phone: (717) 939-9551         Fax: (717) 986-9649