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PennDOT aims to stop flow of flooding costs

PennDOT aims to stop flow of flooding costs

The numbers are startling.

For the past 10 years, flooding has cost the state Department of Transportation more than $210 million in damage to state roads and bridges.

As a result, PennDOT Secretary Leslie S. Richards announced Thursday that the state will conduct a four-phase study to identify current flood-prone areas and areas with the potential to flood in the future and recommend ways to mitigate flood damage to transportation assets.

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The first phase of the study is expected to be finished by September and cost $338,000. It will review flood-prone areas, identify roads and bridges that have been or could be damaged, and project where flooding could occur as a result of changing weather patterns.

It will rely on the Pennsylvania Climate Impacts Assessment updated annually by Penn State University. The latest update in May predicts an 8 to 12 percent increase in precipitation annually.

“Flooding issues are very expensive,” Ms. Richards said. “Over the last 10 years, it has cost PennDOT just over $210 million to fix assets that have been damaged by flooding.”

Beyond the direct cost to PennDOT, she noted, road and bridge closures cause economic hardship to communities and create public safety concerns by limiting access for emergency vehicles. Local emergency management and public safety officials will be consulted.

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Although no time frame has been established for the other three phases of the study, Ms. Richards said the project is a priority.

She said the department is “open to everything” that could mitigate or eliminate flood damage. That could mean something as simple as applying a waterproof sealant to a road surface or as complicated as relocating a road. In addition, PennDOT will use the information as it considers locations for future projects.

Ed Blazina: eblazina@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1470.

First Published: November 13, 2015, 5:00 a.m.

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