Governor Tom Wolf announced yesterday the distribution of almost $489 million in 2018 liquid fuels payments to municipalities through the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) to help them maintain local roads and bridges. This distribution marks a $22.8 million, or 4.9 percent, increase over the $466.2 million distributed in 2017.

“We are thrilled to provide more resources for the commonwealth’s communities to fix local roads and bridges,” said Governor Wolf. “This major investment in our municipal infrastructure will greatly improve our vast transportation
network, enhance local communities, and generate more robust economies
across the state.”

“Governor Wolf and I are committed to addressing needs both on the state
and local road and bridge systems, and the additional support coming through
the liquid fuels payments will help municipalities make progress on their
system backlogs,” said PennDOT Secretary Leslie S. Richards. Richards is a former elected official in Montgomery County.

Liquid fuels allocations are annual payments made on March 1st to
municipalities to help pay for expenses such as snow removal and road repaving. The formula for payments is based on a municipality’s population and miles of locally-owned roads. Municipalities must submit reports on their use of the previous year’s
allocations and other information to the commonwealth to be eligible to receive
liquid fuels payments.

The municipalities in the Glenside Local coverage area received the following funding:

• Abington was allocated $1,645,868.01. That is $9,493.39 per mile of the public roads in the township.
• Cheltenham was allocated $1,033,711.74. That is $10,646.94 per mile of the public roads in the township.
• Jenkintown was allocated $121,324.77. That is $11,233.78 per mile of the public roads in the borough.
• Springfield was allocated $589,671.98. That is $9156.40 per mile of  the public roads in the township.
• Upper Dublin was allocated  $839,555.29. That is $8,135.23 per mile of the public roads in the township.

The amount of a municipality’s allocation is based on its population and miles of roads on their approved Liquid Fuels Inventory. To be placed on the system a road must have minimum of 33′ right-of-way in a township and 16′ in a borough. The “cartway” (drivable surface) must be a minimum width of 16′, and the road must be a minimum of 250′ in length. If the road is a dead end, it must have a cul de sac (turnaround) at the end with a minimum 40′ radius.

To continue to receive Liquid Fuels funds, a road must be maintained in such a condition that it can be driven safely at 15 mph.

You can view the breakdown of the entire list of allocations here.