SR 0119 South Improvement Project

Client: Pennsylvania Department of Transportation

Location: Indiana County, Pennsylvania

Services: Environmental Impact Statements

When the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) proposed improvements along an 8.3-mile stretch of highway in Indiana County, PA, it also forged an innovative program to document the project’s potential environmental concerns. The Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) for the SR 0119 South Improvement Project offer a concise, reader-friendly report and—for the first time—companion, interactive CD-ROM. This pilot project marks the Commonwealth’s first effort to produce an EIS in an electronic format. It also reflects PennDOT’s progressive plan for creating accessible documents that inform and assist regulatory agencies and the public, in accordance with requirements specified under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.

In conjunction with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), PennDOT commissioned KCI to prepare the EIS and Section 404 Permit Application for the proposed highway widening project located between Blairsville and Homer City. In the past, EISs have resembled the size and weight of large metropolitan phone books. But the PennDOT/KCI project team produced a 156-page Draft EIS and 172-page Final EIS using bulleted text boxes, color graphics, and layered mapping that streamlined data, without compromising NEPA requirements. The attractive, concise format and companion CD-ROM facilitated the agency and public review process and helped PennDOT maintain an accelerated schedule for the $53 million project.

In October 1998—seven months after publishing the Draft EIS and only 15 months after the project began—the PennDOT/KCI team submitted the Final EIS to FHWA. After considering eight alternatives that would improve highway network compatibility, capacity, access, and safety as well as support the region’s economic growth, the team recommended the Combination Widening Alternative. The preferred alignment minimizes natural, social, and cultural impacts and reflects public and agency comments and key engineering design issues. Highway improvements are scheduled for construction in 2000.

PennDOT’s high-tech approach to the EIS documentation process demonstrates a fundamental commitment to enhancing the social and economic welfare of local residents and regional transportation users. In February 1999, the Consulting Engineers Council of Pennsylvania recognized the SR 0119 South Improvement Project with its 1999 Honor Award for Studies, as part of the Diamond Awards for Engineering Excellence Program.

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