Traffic Flow

waynesboro@herald-mail.com WAYNESBORO - Unless the Waynesboro Borough Council reverses itself again, the long-awaited project to build a $1.2 million synchronized traffic light system on Main Street could begin in June 2005, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. The project, if it gets under way as planned, would be finished by the end of November 2005, PennDOT spokesman Greg Penny said Friday. The seven-intersection traffic control system runs east along Main Street from North Grant Street to Welty Road in Washington Township.

Different strokes hurt different folks To the editor: In his letter of Sept. 5, John Herbst states that the new comprehensive plan will drastically reduce the value of farmland in Washington County. I hope he noticed Denise Troxell's editorial citing studies that prove that this has not been the case in other counties with similar plans, but I will be willing to wait for the latest study to see if it holds true. Of course farmers need to be compensated for reduced values of their land, if and when proven, and that is why I have worked assiduously for years to provide just that thing.

tarar@herald-mail.com Members of the Washington County Planning Commission on Monday said they feared the amount of traffic that might result from construction of a 1,103-unit housing development proposed for land near Eastern Elementary School would be too much for the area's roads to handle. The proposed development, called Mount Aetna Farms, would include 426 single-family homes, 521 townhouses, 10 apartment units and 136 condominiums, County Senior Planner Timothy Lung said.

tarar@herald-mail.com After about a year of planning for Antietam National Battlefield's annual Salute to Independence, there's usually one sight that makes park Superintendent John Howard feel a little relieved. "I always like to see the stage go up, because then I know it's going to happen," Howard said Thursday, while looking over a section of the battlefield that is expected to be packed Saturday with 35,000 to 40,000 spectators. The Maryland Symphony Orchestra will perform an Independence Day concert to be followed by fireworks.

laurae@herald-mail.com Sen. Alex X. Mooney is seeing red. After his car was stolen last month, Mooney got two citations in the mail because the thief who took his car was caught on camera running two red lights. Now Mooney has to go to court to prove himself innocent of the violations, which carry fines of $50 and $75. "In the American justice system, a person is supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. This turns that on its head," he said. Mooney, R-Frederick/Washington, filed legislation this week to ban the red-light cameras in Maryland.

waynesboro@herald-mail.com It's been dubbed the "most complex" and "most significant" road project in Franklin County. By the end of this year, if things go as planned, construction crews will begin moving dirt for the widening of U.S. 30 East (Lincoln Way East) from its intersection with Stouffer Avenue and Walker Road, under Interstate 81 to a point 3.7 miles east, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Highways said. Mike Crochunis, in PennDOT's Region 8 Office in Harrisburg, Pa., said construction bids are expected to go out in July.

andrear@herald-mail.com FUNKSTOWN - Veteran Funkstown Councilman Richard Nigh finds little room for politics in his public service. "In a town like this you're not a Republican or a Democrat. You just do what's best for the people - or try to," said Nigh, 74. "You try to do everything that's right. We try to please everybody, but we can't. " He was the top vote-getter in the town council election in May, earning re-election to his third term in office. With a laugh, Nigh attributed his success to his friendly personality and willingness to canvass the town on foot with his election signs.

waynesboro@herald-mail.com Twelve years ago, when planning for the widening of a three-mile stretch of U.S. 30 east of Chambersburg began, the cost of construction was estimated at $6.4 million. Bids for the project are scheduled to go out this winter, but inflation over the last dozen years has boosted the estimated construction cost to $22 million. Jeffrey P. Weaver, assistant district engineer for PennDOT's District 8, told about 60 people gathered for the Greater Chambersburg Chamber of Commerce's 2002 Legislative Forum on transportation in Franklin County on Friday that the total cost to widen the road is estimated at $29 million.

andrews@herald-mail.com Logistically, the biggest difference between the Battle of Antietam re-enactment five years ago and the one scheduled for next weekend may be an extra road. Spectators will be able to reach Rench Road, site of the re-enactment, by either Downsville Pike (Md. 632) or Sharpsburg Pike (Md. 65). Last time, all traffic was directed to Sharpsburg Pike. Police and event organizers expect the second access road to help the flow of traffic. Still, if you go, brace yourself for a long wait.

chambersburg@herald-mail.com CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - A $350,000 project will upgrade the interior of The Shook Home and change its South Second Street exterior. There are two phases to renovations at the 64-bed nursing home that has been a fixture in the borough for nearly 75 years, said Edward Parks, chief executive officer. Work began a couple of weeks ago on the first resident's room, including dry walling, painting, wall papering, adding a dropped ceiling and new heating and air conditioning units, he said.