Signs saying "Future 376 Corridor" will go up by mid-May, designating a new name for the 90-mile stretch of roadway now carrying a hodge-podge of names that Pennsylvania Department of Transportation officials want to be a continuous interstate with a single name -- Interstate 376.

PennDOT has negotiated with the Federal Highway Administration to reduce the cost of the interstate designation from $91 million to less than $45.8 million. That money will go to improve eight to 10 interchanges and do some guiderail and median work in the four affected counties (Allegheny, Beaver, Lawrence and Mercer), and to pay for new signage, said Dan Cessna, District 11 executive. The current designations for the section to receive the I-376 designation include Interstate 279 (also known as the Parkway West), the Parkway East, Route 22/30, and Route 60.

"We've worked with FHWA to scope it to $30 million in highway improvements and $15 million in signage," Mr. Cessna said. "Basically we negotiated improvements that were not as costly at interchanges."

PennDOT still has a big gap in funding -- it has federal and state funding of about $14 million and needs around $32 million more.

Mr. Cessna says 2008 is the earliest date that the southern part of the route could actually get the I-376 designation.