Turnpike Announces 20-Minute Stoppages at Carlisle Exit Late Saturday Night

Three 20-minute stoppages needed to install overhead sign in the toll-plaza area.

HARRISBURG, PA (08/19/2010)(readMedia)-- Pennsylvania Turnpike travelers should be aware of changing traffic patterns and intermittent stoppages this weekend as crews put the finishing touches on the $12 million project to reconstruct the Carlisle Interchange (#226) in Middlesex Township, Cumberland County.

Three traffic stoppages, each 20 minutes in duration, will be implemented starting late Saturday night Aug. 21. The first stoppage will occur at midnight and subsequent stoppages will follow periodically, concluding prior to 4 a.m. on Sunday Aug. 22. The stoppages are required to install an overhead-sign structure, and they will be for all vehicles entering and exiting the Pennsylvania Turnpike via Carlisle.

Beginning at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 21, work crews will set up single-lane traffic patterns to prepare for the first stoppage at midnight.

The stoppages allow the contractor, Hempt Bros. Inc., to execute sign installation without jeopardizing motorist or worker safety.

Construction for the Carlisle Interchange modernization project is expected to be completed this month with interchange lighting work to be completed late this year.

Motorists traveling in this area - both near the interchange and on the Turnpike mainline - are urged to use caution and remain alert for slow-moving or stopped traffic. This work is weather sensitive, and it could be rescheduled in case of precipitation, high winds or lightning.

Pennsylvania Turnpike motorists can get real-time information about roadway conditions via the Turnpike Roadway Information Program, or TRIP, by visiting www.paturnpike.com or calling 1-866-976-TRIP. Officials advise motorists to check out conditions before they leave.