S.R. 222 Corridor Improvements

Blandon, Pennsylvania

Michael Baker provided design services to improve the safety and capacity along a 3-mile stretch of the S.R. 222 corridor in Berks County, Pennsylvania. The corridor experiences a high volume of traffic, including passenger cars, large trucks and horse-drawn buggies (common within the community), which would cause significant delays and congestion.

Michael Baker’s design improvements included widening S.R. 222 to a five-lane cross section with two lanes in each direction and a center turn lane, capacity enhancements at two signalized intersections and one unsignalized intersection, turn lanes at intersection approaches and two multilane roundabouts. The project required full reconstruction and widening along S.R. 222 between the three intersections and continued to a bridge over Willow Creek to the south. The S.R. 222 bridge over Willow Creek was reconstructed to accommodate the additional roadway width of four 11-foot lanes and two 10-foot shoulders. 

Michael Baker’s development of multilane roundabouts was used for one of the first times in the state of Pennsylvania for this project. In effect, the roundabouts were hybrids that featured two full lanes that narrow to single lanes where needed. The lanes were designed wide enough to accommodate two trucks simultaneously and to accommodate even wider vehicles, such as snowplows. Because the region experiences snowy winters, allowing sufficient room for plows on the roundabouts was a key design consideration. Michael Baker’s innovative design succeeded in its goal of improving traffic safety, and it reduced travel times along the S.R. 222 corridor by approximately 25%.