A coalition of stakeholders from Maryland and Pennsylvania joined U.S. Rep. David Trone (D-MD) in applauding the allocation of $6 million in funding for preliminary engineering work for U.S. Route 219 that will connect Maryland and Pennsylvania.
The money from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is a signal, stakeholders said, that the 11-mile corridor of the route will be completed in the next decade.
The project will connect U.S. Route 219 to Interstate 68 in Maryland and the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Part of the Appalachian Development Highway System, the road would connect that part of Appalachia with major economic hubs in those states.
“Completing 219 is about more than a highway, it’s about creating more jobs and economic development and improving safety and travel times,” Trone said. “This funding brings us one step closer to finally completing this vital transportation corridor. I’d like to thank the state and local leaders in Maryland and Pennsylvania for working tirelessly to get this project over the finish line.”
Although the ADHS was started more than 50 years ago under the Lyndon Johnson administration, it is still not completed.
“This is another significant step forward in completing this extremely important project. The economic and safety impacts of this highway have been well documented for both rural Western Maryland and rural Southwestern PA, and the bipartisan teamwork these two areas have shown over the past several decades now to get this project across the goal line is noteworthy,” said Paul Edwards, Chairman of the Garrett County Board of Commissioners. “The opportunity that will be created by this road will be significant, and I thank all those in both states, both present and past, that have had a hand in getting us this far.”