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Scott to fix Swallow Hill Road
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Scott officials told complaining residents Tuesday that steep, heavily traveled Swallow Hill Road will be repaired, but they didn't specify when.
Commissioners' President Tom Castello said the township will need to take out a $1.5 million bond to redo the busy road, which leads to St. Clair Hospital at one end and the Chartiers Valley Intermediate School on the other, as well as to repair portions of Kane Boulevard.
"It's [money] we don't have," he said. Mr. Castello said the bond would be taken out "sometime this summer" and construction is estimated to last four to five months. The township has tried unsuccessfully to get grant money from the state and the Port Authority to help with the repair cost, he added.
The 25-year-old road is 10 years past the life of most roads.
Residents have complained the deteriorating concrete section is hard on their vehicles and noisy to boot.
"Swallow Hill Road is a mess. It's a disgrace to the township," said Vito Cedro of Crosswinds Drive. At one point he begged officials to "please raise my taxes and fix that road."
Commissioner Bill Wells, in whose ward the concrete section is located, said he has received many complaints from residents in recent months. Some have indicated their sleep is disturbed by vehicles making loud noises as they pass over the rutted sections.
Chartiers Valley bus driver Rita Manski of Hope Street added, "The kids literally bounce up and down in their seats" on the road. She presented a circular of unknown authorship that reads in part, "Do you think Swallow Hill Road needs to be replaced?"
Mr. Wells said his wife recently was aboard a bus traveling on Swallow Hill Road in which the ride was so bumpy that it adversely affected an elderly woman.
When Mr. Wells asked when the bond would be taken out, Mr. Castello replied, "Sometime this summer." Construction is estimated to take 4-5 months.
First Published March 14, 2013 12:00 am
