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Factoryville plans to make school route safe

Mauri Rapp Abington Journal Correspondent

Despite being at the tail end of a three-year, multimillion dollar Streetscape Enhancement project, Factoryville is poised to enter yet another project to improve its borough. At the June 10 borough council meeting, Administrative Coordinator Liz Ratchford announced that Factoryville had been approved for a grant totaling $224,945 from PennDot’s Safe Routes to School program for the improvement of Riverside Drive.

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Factoryville Borough recently received a $224,000 grant for an enhancement project along Riverside Drive. Sidewalks will be installed as part of the program. Above and at right are sections of the road that will see improvements.

Abington Journal photos/Mauri Rapp

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Part of the project will involve the installation of new sidewalks along Riverside Drive, beginning at the entrance of Christy Mathewson Park and proceeding across Church Street approximately one block past Factoryville Masonic Lodge. Factoryville will also be able to install new signs and curbs along the route as well as Duratherm crosswalks, which are embedded directly into the street pavement and are designed to last as long as the pavement itself.

A federally-funded and state sponsored program, the Safe Routes to School initiative got its start in 2005 when Congress passed legislation to promote more active lifestyles in children in response to a reported 30-year decline in children walking to school. The federal government has earmarked $612 million for this program between 2005 and 2009 to help municipalities improve infrastructure along routes to schools. Ratchford said that the borough was able to qualify because Riverside Drive is a main route to Lackawanna Trail Elementary Center. “There are very specific guidelines that you have to follow in order to be approved for this,” she said.

Factoryville’s first Streetscape Enhancement Project began in September of 2006 and included the installation of new sidewalks along College Avenue as well as new curbing, benches, street lights, planters, trees and garbage receptacles.

For more information on the Safe Routes to School program, visit www.saferoutesinfo.org.