Penn Township residents will have to wait at least a few more months for the completion of the traffic signal at Airport Road and Route 8. Butler Eagle file photo

Penn Township residents will have to wait at least a few more months for the completion of the traffic signal at Airport Road and Route 8, which is under construction and is meant to control traffic at the township’s busiest intersection.

In what he calls “some not-so-good news,” township supervisor Samuel Ward has sent out a message to township residents saying the poles for the traffic signal will arrive seven weeks later than anticipated.

“We anticipated a 26-week fabrication lead time,” Ward said. “However, with an increased backlog, the latest fabrication completion update indicates delivery in late October 2024, about 33 weeks after fabrication was released.”

It was initially expected that the poles for the traffic signal would be completed this month.

The township has been seeking to control traffic at the intersection for several years, but not until recently has any progress been made on an improved traffic signal. Since 2017, the township has tried and failed multiple times to obtain grant funding for the project, until receiving a $450,000 grant from PennDOT’s Automated Red Light Enforcement Grant program in 2022.

Another $50,000 came from a Local Use Grant from Butler County.

Work began on the traffic signal improvement project in May, when contractor M&B Services began installing underground conduits for the new traffic lights. M&B was awarded the construction contract for the project in January.

The revamped intersection will feature new left-turn lanes, pedestrian crossings, refreshed traffic lights and improved lighting.

Once the poles for the traffic light are eventually delivered to Penn Township, Ward expects it will take an additional three weeks for the new signals to become operational. In the meantime, during the installation, traffic lane restrictions will take place.

“Please slow down and be aware of our contractor’s employees working in the area as you approach and pass through this intersection,” Ward wrote. “Their safety is our primary concern.”