Similar in appearance to a missing tooth, the gap where several damaged concrete sound barrier panels have been removed from an I-78 overpass in Lower Saucon Township is visible to motorists traveling southbound on Rt. 378. A loose panel was discovered Wednesday when emergency crews responded to a car crash near the overpass, Lehigh Valley Live reported.
It wasn’t a happy accident for the people involved in it, but according to authorities cited in a local news story, the car crash that happened on Rt. 378 near the I-78 overpass in Lower Saucon Township Wednesday morning may have been a blessing in disguise.
Lehigh Valley Live reported Thursday that when emergency crews arrived at the scene of the accident, they noticed that sound barrier panel along the interstate above was “loose.”
The story did not explain how first responders were able to tell that the concrete panel was loose, but reported that statements made during emergency radio broadcasts from the scene indicated there was concern by officials that “it would fall onto the road below.”
Fortunately, that did not occur.
The article cited PennDOT Engineering District 5 spokesman Ron Young, who said that at least two other columns of panels that were loose were previously removed, and that additional damaged sound barrier panels are supposed to be removed Thursday night.
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I-78 cuts a swath through Lower Saucon Township from west to east, and although there are no exits located within the municipal boundaries, the highway has an impact on the lives and livelihoods of many area residents.
The nearest exit to Rt. 378 on I-78 is the Hellertown-Bethlehem interchange on Rt. 412.
