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BELLEFONTE -- Motorists traveling through the Interstate 80 and Interstate 99 interchange area will encounter closures and detours beginning Thursday as work continues on the $259 million High-Speed Interchange project.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation said Jacksonville Road will be closed between Forest Avenue and I-80 westbound from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, weather permitting, while crews set bridge beams. The beams are for a bridge that will eventually connect I-80 westbound with the I-99 southbound ramp.
During the closure, I-99 northbound traffic headed toward I-80 westbound will be directed onto I-80 eastbound at Exit 161/Bellefonte. Drivers will continue to Exit 163/Jacksonville-Howard and use that interchange to reconnect with I-80 westbound.
The I-80 westbound off-ramp at Exit 161 also will be closed. Traffic will continue west to Exit 158/Milesburg, use the interchange and return east on I-80 to Exit 161.
Additional traffic restrictions are scheduled to begin Monday, Oct. 12, when the contractor will close the right travel lane of I-80 eastbound and the Exit 161/Bellefonte off-ramp.
Traffic will be reduced to a single lane and use a crossover at mile marker 159.2 to cross the median onto I-80 westbound. PennDOT expects the restrictions to remain in place through the end of October while crews complete regrading and stabilization work and pave the travel lane and eastbound off-ramp.
The work is being completed in preparation for shifting traffic onto the newly constructed bridge over Jacksonville Road.
The High-Speed Interchange project is designed to provide a direct connection between I-80 and I-99, eliminating the need for interstate traffic to use Route 26 between the highways. PennDOT said the project is intended to improve safety and reduce congestion.
The project includes construction of 10 bridges, four retaining walls, five box culverts, seven sign structures and three changeable message boards, along with new and reconstructed roads and ramps, drainage improvements, highway lighting and other work.
Construction is expected to continue through 2030. Trumbull Corporation of Pittsburgh is the contractor for the $259 million project, with approximately $170 million coming from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The interchange is one phase of a larger three-phase project. An earlier $52 million phase created the local access interchange at mile marker 163, providing direct access between Route 26 and I-80. Reconstruction and widening of Route 26 began in November 2024 and is scheduled to finish this year.