Dangerous Newtown Borough Curve To Get Sidewalks Under $1.3M Grant

NEWTOWN BOROUGH, PA — The dangerous North Main Street curve will be improved with sidewalks thanks to a federal pass through grant from the state.

At council’s May meeting, officials announced that the borough has been awarded a $1.3 million federal TASA grant through the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to pay for the installation of new sidewalks on the dangerous curve.

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The sidewalk project has been languishing at the top the borough’s priority list for years, but funding and the logistics of the project have kept it from moving forward.

The Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside grant, or TASA, will fund the installation of 2,000 feet of sidewalks and curbs on both sides of the street to improve sight lines and safety for pedestrians.

Due to the winding, sloped nature of the roadway, pedestrians heading to the State Street business district or walking home are forced to walk in the travel lanes along the curve creating dangerous auto-pedestrian conflicts.

The project will include the installation of sidewalks on both sides of North State Street beginning at Jefferson Avenue and continuing around the curve to Edgeboro Drive and then along Edgeboro Drive to the site of the future pedestrian bridge.

Borough officials are crediting the future pedestrian bridge project, which is currently out for bid, for convincing the state to allocate funding to improve pedestrian safety around the curve, which will serve as a connector between the downtown and the pedestrian bridge.

The new pedesrtian bridge, which is being funded through a $1 million grant from the state, will connect Newtown Borough and Newtown Township over the Newtown Creek between Edgeboro Drive in the borough and behind Penn Community Bank in the township.

Neighboring Middletown Township has also been awarded a TASA grant to fund the construction of three sidewalk segments totaling 1,100 feet, which will close critical gaps along Woodbourne Road.

The $1.4 million grant will help fund a continuous, ADA-accessible pedestrian route linking residential areas, the Woodbourne SEPTA Station, and the Oxford Valley Mall, improving safety and connectivity for commuters, visitors, and residents.

TASA grants provide funding for projects and activities defined as transportation alternatives, including on- and off-road pedestrian and bicycle facilities, infrastructure projects for improving non-driver access to public transportation and enhanced mobility, community improvement activities, environmental mitigation, trails that serve a transportation purpose, and safe routes to school projects.