Residents urge action on Justabout Road safety; council to request traffic counts and contact PennDOT

Residents pressed Peters Township Council on June 8 for faster action to address safety, drainage and capacity problems on Justabout Road, a state‑owned two‑lane route that speakers said now serves more than 100 new homes and several businesses.

The public comment period opened with a letter from Miss Finehau, who presented photos and a list of complaints including narrow 17‑foot sections, missing shoulders and yellow center lines, potholes, shoulder collapse, and repeated drainage failures. She told the council the road’s condition has worsened as four new subdivisions and businesses have increased traffic: “Somebody is going to get killed on this road,” she said, also citing inconsistent and confusing speed signage.

Township manager Paul Lauer and a PennDOT representative, Mr. Robert Balentine, told the meeting the road is classified and maintained by PennDOT and that the state determines speed limits based on engineering studies. Mr. Balentine described PennDOT’s approach to speed requests: “They’ll do a speed study to determine what the 85th percentile is… then they’ll make a determination as to whether or not to approve the request.” Lauer said the township does not have authority to repave state roads but can request traffic studies, solicit enforcement, and work with state legislators to raise the issue.

Several residents detailed recurring hazards. Ron Tumi said runoff floods his driveway and garages annually; John Quarter described a persistent puddle that crosses the roadway after storms and a failing French drain installed decades ago. Scott Binhower warned that the flooded sections produce hydroplaning risk: “After a huge rainfall, that water extends clear across Justabout Road…I think that affects the gentleman’s house…someone’s going to come through the hydroplane, go into a house.”

Council members described options the township can pursue without taking over the road: request PennDOT traffic counts and reclassification reviews, ask county or state representatives to intervene, and arrange increased police patrols for enforcement. Staff agreed to request vehicle counts from the township’s traffic planning and design group, obtain accident data from police, and reach out to Representative Mahalik and Senator Bartalada to press PennDOT to re‑examine the route.

The council did not promise immediate reconstruction or reassignment of maintenance responsibility. Paul Lauer and other members cautioned that if the township were to accept jurisdiction the long‑term maintenance cost would far exceed current liquid fuels and local allocations; one official estimated multi‑million dollars would be needed to bring the road to township standards. Lauer said the next concrete steps would be traffic counts and formal requests to PennDOT and the township’s state representatives.

What’s next: Staff will request traffic counts and accident history, and the township will contact state legislators and PennDOT to request study and possible inclusion in state maintenance or improvement schedules.