New ramp to turnpike interchange now open
Direct ramp lets drivers bypass Sumneytown Pike intersection
TOWAMENCIN » Drivers now have one more way to get onto the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Towamencin, while avoiding one of the township’s busiest intersections.
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission has now opened a direct on-ramp from Towamencin Avenue to the toll plaza at the Lansdale Interchange, so drivers heading for the highway can now skip the intersection of Towamencin Avenue
and Sumneytown Pike.
According to Reporter archives and Towamencin staff, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission first contacted Towamencin in
June 2000 to announce a study of eight turnpike interchanges in the greater Philadelphia area, with the Lansdale interchange in Towamencin one chosen for further study.
“Concerned about the already-then growing traffic traveling through Towamencin, and with a vision that new development throughout the North Penn and Indian Valley region would bring even greater demands, the township board of supervisors directed the township traffic engineer to study the issue and provide recommendations,” said township Manager Rob Ford.
Over the next several years, various alternative designs were planned and vetted, ultimately leading to the design that has finally been built, with two direct access EZ-Pass lanes from Sumneytown Pike to the northbound and southbound turnpike, and the new Towamencin Avenue ramp that is now open.
“Prior to this, all traffic had to be funneled through the Sumneytown Pike/ Turnpike interchange intersection, routinely resulting in traffic backups on Sumneytown Pike, in both directions, and Forty Foot Road,” Ford said.
“By providing the alternative access and exits, the traffic could be diluted so it did not have to travel through one ‘funnel,’” he said.
For more information or updates on the turnpike widening project, visit www.PATurnpike.com and select “Travel Tools,” then “Design and Construction,” “Major Design and Construction Projects” and “Milepost A20-A31 Reconstruction.”