As many have noticed, the first phase of paving was completed on Hillendale Road.  We have wanted to address this road for several years, but the cost of the repair needed always exceeded our available funds. With the implementation of a 5-year paving program in 2023, we finally had a plan to address Hillendale Road.  Since then, there have been a lot of moving parts, and we thought it best to give everyone an update on the progress and the plan moving forward as well.

It is almost never as simple as just paving the road. Since 2023 we have invested over $55,000 in materials alone, for much needed improvements to Hillendale, mainly for stormwater pipe replacements.  We have replaced a total of five pipe crossings to ensure the new road doesn’t have to be dug up for many years to come.  In all those crossings, while we didn’t increase the pipe sizing for capacity we did replace the existing concrete pipes in favor of ductile iron.  Many of these crossings have high heavy truck traffic and have low cover protecting the pipes.  As a result, we cannot use plastic pipes, and the ductile iron is our best bet.  Also, due to the concrete pipe being short 6-8’ long sections, there are usually 3-4 joints under the roadway, and those joints are susceptible to shifting, creating sink holes. Ductile iron pipe comes in 20’ lengths so there is usually only one joint under the roadway and with the way the pipe is designed ductile iron has more overlap and a better gasket to reduce the chance of any issues. Also, like many pipe crossings throughout the township, they were installed many decades ago and the pipes usually started and stopped right next to the road.  In some cases, the road has already been widened at some point which made the ends of the pipes even closer to the edge of the road.  We have replaced numerous pipes in the last few years and found pipe extensions were installed but the pipe material was different and sometimes a different size as well, than what was originally there. Most commonly, we found the original concrete pipe under the road but found plastic extensions on each end.

Where we could, we replaced the old, mismatched pipe with the ductile iron and extended the inlet and outfalls from the road to help reduce the sudden drop-offs.  We couldn’t do that in all locations because of the geography of the area.  In those cases, we simply installed pre-cast inlets and/or headwalls. However, the pre-cast headwalls didn’t fit every location, so we had to form and pour our own. 

Once the pipes were completed and the budget finalized, the project had to be publicly advertised and put out for bid, as required by PA law. After awarding the bid to Long’s Asphalt, supporting documents were submitted to PennDOT’s Municipal Services Department for final approval. The project is funded through the Municipal Liquid Fuels program, which uses gas tax revenue to support road work on locally owned public roads. PennDOT distributes these funds to municipalities based on road mileage and population. Now let’s look at the project details:

Hillendale Road Paving Project Summary

Location: Hillendale Road, from Newark Road to just before Thompson Road
Total Length: 1.67 miles (split into two phases)

Phase 1 (Completed)

• Length: 5,125 feet (0.97 miles)
• Work Completed:
  • 2” surface milling to reshape and lower the road
  • 10” base repair milling to fix damaged areas and widen the road by 1’ on each side
  • 5” of 2A stone for a stable base
  • 5” of 25mm Bituminous Concrete Base Course (BCBC) for structural support
  • Tack coat to seal cracks and help new asphalt adhere
  • 2.5” of 19mm leveling course to smooth low spots and set proper drainage
  • 1.5” of 9.5mm wearing course for a smooth, quiet final surface
• Cost: $748,878.65

Phase 2 (Planned for Summer 2026)

• Length: 3,650 feet
• Estimated Cost: $620,000
• Reason for Delay: Coordination with water main installation between Sharp and Thompson Roads

Project Totals

• Total Length: 1.67 miles
• Total Estimated Cost: $1,368,787.65