River Road Repaving Put On PennDOT’s Radar

State Sen. Steve Santarsiero and his staff recently toured River Road with PennDOT officials as part of a push to repave the roadway.

The Democratic lawmaker has been calling for the state to repave River Road from Solebury Township and New Hope Borough through Morrisville Borough.

PennDOT has taken on paving projects along River Road this year and completed some work after the July 2023 flash flooding damaged parts of the road, Santarsiero said.

During a stop at Francisco’s on the River in Upper Makefield Township, township Supervisor Chairperson Yvette Taylor told officials of the ongoing issue with flooding along the roadway. 

PennDOT officials gave an update on the pipe replacement work to mitigate flooding that is scheduled for River Road in 2025.

While on the road tour, PennDOT officials said that the repaving of River Road through Upper Makefield Township and the repaving of Washington Crossing Road (Route 532) in the municipality will be completed in 2025.

“River Road is a key roadway to the economic success of New Hope and the surrounding area,” said Santarsiero. “The beautiful tree cover that makes the drive so scenic means water pools on the roadway longer causing the road surface to deteriorate more quickly.  It has been a priority of mine to work with PennDOT to get this road into better shape, making it a safer and more pleasant drive for residents and visitors.  I’m thrilled this project is underway and appreciate PennDOT’s commitment to prioritizing this important road.”

Santarsiero told NewHopeFreePress.com the residents, staff, and his own drives through the area have led to staff putting together a list of roads that are in need of work.

“PennDOT only has so much of a budget and staff to fix state highways,” Santarsiero said.

PennDOT keeps its own list of roads and intersections that need to be repaired, repaved, and revamped.

“PennDOT has been implementing new resurfacing tactics to extend the life of our roadways between full-scale repaving projects, making the most of out of a limited budget and relentless need,” said Santarsiero. 

The state senator, whose district stretches from lower to upper Bucks County, said he had supported funding for PennDOT projects over his years in the legislature.

“It is critical we invest in our infrastructure,” he said.

PennDOT is responsible for nearly 40,000 miles of highway and roughly 25,000 bridges across the state.

According to a 2020 PennDOT report, Bucks County has 3,500 miles of roadway that is owned by municipalities, the state, and the federal government.