The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation District 5 announced today a long-term lane restriction will be implemented on Route 248 west this Thursday due to a damaged concrete retaining wall in Lower Towamensing Township, Carbon County. The lane on Route 248 west will be restricted between Route 873 and Delaware Avenue. A recent inspection revealed damage to a 25-foot high section of the wall along the mountainside.

PennDOT has hired a contractor to make necessary repairs to the damaged wall, and for safety reasons the long-term lane restriction on PA 248 west will remain in place until the repairs are complete.

Work is scheduled to begin in late February/early March and at times will entail weeknight lane closures on 248 east and west between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. (during which time a single lane of Route 248 west traffic will be shifted onto Route 248 east to provide space for maneuvering equipment and materials).

Work will include removing loose dirt and installing retaining wall anchors into the bedrock behind the wall.

This section of Route 248 has an average daily traffic volume of 20,438 vehicles (9,881 vehicles on PA 248 west, 10,557 vehicles on Route 248 east).

H&K Group Inc. of Skippack, is the general contractor on the $986,222 emergency project that is expected to be complete by July 5.

Motorists can check 511PA before they travel for the latest conditions on PA 248, as well as on more than 40,000 roadway miles by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 850 traffic cameras.