Route 356 widening through Buffalo Township delayed to 2027
A planned widening of Route 356 through the business district of Buffalo Township, already delayed to 2025, has been delayed further to 2027. This could lead to a few more years of traffic headaches for residents of the fast-growing township.
According to Christine Gibbs, public relations director for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the decision to delay the planned widening was based on several factors, including timing, priority and the fact that a new park-and-ride has come to Buffalo Township during the time the widening project has been planned out.
“Right now, this project is just starting into final design, so it will still be some time until it moves into a construction phase,” Gibbs said. “The schedule for the project was delayed due to some changes in the area that needed to be taken into account within the project limits.”
Aside from the new park-and-ride, the busy stretch of Route 356 in Buffalo Township includes Freeport Area High School, as well as many of the township’s stores and restaurants.
Buffalo Township manager Rich Hill said the stretch of Route 356 can get very congested at certain times of the year, especially during football season.
“We have Lernerville Speedway on Friday nights, and that adds traffic,” Hill said, “and when Freeport high school has football games. Those are some peak times of traffic. Sometimes Friday night at Lernerville coincides with Friday night football games in September.”
Gibbs said traffic volumes along the stretch of Route 356 have remained flat since 2020, around the time when the project was announced.
“There is still the same amount of average daily traffic with approximately 18,000 cars daily, so the original project plans are remaining in place with what was reported in 2020,” Gibbs said.
As of now, the project is estimated to cost $27 million when it begins in its new estimated start window of fall 2027. The plans call for widening the road from two lanes to four and replacing traffic signals, as well as adding sidewalks, ramps compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and a stormwater drain.
The project also will include a new park-and-ride, which will be moved to a new location “across Silverville Road, between it and the state Route 28 ramp.” The current park-and-ride will be closed when the new one opens.
Hill, as well as township supervisors chairman Ron Zampogna, said the township hasn’t had much communication with PennDOT regarding the project.
“We don't really correspond with them on a daily basis,” Hill said.
“We know that they have other projects that they need to complete before they start this project,” Zampogna said.
Among those is a series of massive improvement projects along Route 228 in the southwestern part of the county, including the Balls Bend Safety Improvement Project, which is expected to finish in January at a cost of $56 million.
