Downingtown neighbors count down the days until Boot Road reopens after sewer line damage creates gaping hole
DOWNINGTOWN, Pa. (CBS) - In Downingtown, part of Boot Road is completely blocked off as crews continue to fix a hole after a sewer line broke on Sunday.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the water from the sewer line is what led to the road damage.
West Whiteland Township said their contractors are working on digging up the sewer main, but it could take a couple of days.
"You have to get used to it up until they fix everything," Downingtown resident Anne-Marie Hage said.
Many drivers are finding ways around the disruption.
"The traffic that is supposed to go on Boot Road is coming through our neighborhood now," Hage said.
The nearby Windridge neighborhood has now become a detour, but the extra traffic is a safety concern for some with young kids, like Kristen Carrier.
She said drivers are going too fast on residential roads.
"Even though it's a beautiful day, we didn't want him outside playing in the front yard because you just never know how fast people are going to go," Carrier said.
"This is a very family-oriented neighborhood," Hage said. "We have a lot of kids that play outside. They're at school you don't see them, but in the afternoon they're all out and with the cars flying up the hill. It's a safety concern."
The closure is also impacting the way some kids are getting to school.
In a statement shared with CBS News Philadelphia, the Downingtown Area School District said,
"Thankfully, the closure of Boot Road has had a very minimal impact on our district transportation services. The bridge on Boot Road has been undergoing construction and closed intermittently for the large majority of our school year, so our transportation department routes already avoided that section of Boot Road. As a result, only four out of our approximately 750 bus routes had to be re-routed today. We are grateful to East Caln Township, the Downingtown Borough Police Department, PennDOT and local workers for taking precautions to keep our community safe. Any families that may need additional assistance from our transportation department are welcome to reach out to the district for support."
As some count down the days until the road is fixed, neighbors hope drivers will keep safety in mind.
"I understand they're trying to get to and from where they need to go, but, this is a neighborhood -- 25 mph," Carrier said.
According to PennDOT, Boot Road is expected to reopen in a couple of days.
In the meantime, drivers can use Route 30 as an alternative route.
