It will be another day before the “superload” carrying equipment for the Homer City Generating natural gas-fired power plant starts its journey from Schenley to Indiana County.
The convoy carrying the equipment that is 205 feet long, 17 feet wide and weighs up to 381 tons will start tomorrow morning. This will be the second delay for the project, but Edwards Moving and Rigging HR Director Timothy Ernst said the two delays were to make sure that everything from permits to the path were ready.
The trip will start tomorrow at 9:00 AM, leaving Schenley and headed to Leechburg and Apollo to Delmont via Route 66, then it will turn off on Route 22 and continue towards the Indiana-Westmoreland County line. The convoy will then pull off at a staging area and install more equipment before moving on at 7:00 PM. As the “superload” crosses the bridge over the Conemaugh River, drivers to the East of the county line should expect a rolling slowdown. The following day, the superload will continue its run at 9:00 AM onto Campbell’s Mill Road to Blacklick Road to the Homer City power plant.
All vehicles travelling on Route 22/119 west of the Indiana County line will detour using Bairdstown Road/West Market Street to East Market Street/Old William Penn Highway to the Route 22/119 interchange. Traffic will also be detoured at the Route 119 intersection with Campbells Mill Road south to Route 22 West. For those in the Black Lick area, drivers will proceed across Route 22 West then north on Route 217 to Blacklick Road.
While the speed is anticipated at 10-25 miles an hour at its fastest, Ernst said that it will very slowly, especially as they travel across some of the bridges en route.
Drivers are reminded that there will be traffic slowdowns and in some areas, they will not be able to pass the superload, so detours will have to be considered.
