Pennsylvania Avenue carries a lot of Oreland's daily traffic, and it passes Oreland Station, the Christ's Lutheran Church entrance to Piszek Preserve and the signal at Bridge Street. The official name on the road is less familiar. To the state it is SR 2027, and it runs through both Springfield Township and Upper Dublin Township on its way across Oreland.
That split helps explain why the missing sidewalk and awkward crossings stayed in place so long. It also explains the plan that will finally fill them. In May 2026, the two townships learned they had won $1,228,212 together for Pennsylvania Avenue. The money will pay for new sidewalk, a trail extension, two mid-block crossings and a traffic signal upgrade at Bridge Street. The project is better understood as one corridor than as a list of separate fixes. The grant itself is the first proof that the two townships now see it that way.
A road with two owners and one complaint
The project didn't come from a master plan. It started with residents asking questions. Upper Dublin's November 11, 2025 board presentation says township staff "began to collaborate in response to resident inquiries regarding pedestrian accessibility." Through 2025, the two townships' managers, public works, parks and recreation, and police departments held a series of meetings about it.
Those meetings produced a finding that shaped everything after. The presentation says the staffs "identified there is a corridor component as well as specific zones of improvements to address needs." Each problem spot was real, but the road needed to be handled as one piece.
The resolution Upper Dublin's Board of Commissioners adopted that night sets out the goals:
"Upper Dublin Township and Springfield Township have defined a preferred option for corridor-wide improvements to address inter-municipal trail connections, eliminate missing sidewalk gaps, upgrade pedestrian access at Bridge Street, improve pedestrian connectivity to the SEPTA Regional Rail Oreland Station and provide traffic calming and safety benefits."
Upper Dublin took the lead as applicant, with Springfield as its partner. Boles Smyth Associates prepared the application, and Upper Dublin agreed to cover a local match of up to $75,000 for pre-construction design. That is why the PennDOT Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside listing shows the full $1,228,212 award under Upper Dublin, even though Springfield's May 27, 2026 notice describes it as a joint award.
The state ownership also explains the paperwork. The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) runs the TASA program for PennDOT. The money comes from federal funds that the Commonwealth awards each year. According to the presentation, DVRPC and Montgomery County reviewed the draft in September 2025. Their feedback was that the project addresses pedestrian and bicycle connectivity, is multi-municipal, and has planning-level engineering already done. The road's split ownership had made the gaps hard to fix, and a two-township application is what made this grant competitive.
What gets built, zone by zone
The final application divides the work into three zones. Read from east to west, they line up with the parts of Pennsylvania Avenue people use most.
East zone: a crossing at Oreland Mill Road
The eastern piece is a mid-block crossing with a rapid flashing beacon at Oreland Mill Road. The application describes it as the link that will "connect Upper Dublin and Springfield trail networks." Oreland Mill Road is also where Piszek Preserve's second entrance sits, next to Springfield Manor. That 0.6-mile preserve trail runs between this point and its other entrance on Pennsylvania Avenue by Christ's Lutheran Church, according to Wissahickon Trails.
Central zone: Bridge Street and the station stretch
This zone does the most work. It includes a trail extension to Rech Avenue, new sidewalk to Lafayette Avenue, and traffic signal and ADA ramp upgrades at Bridge Street. It also calls for a "proposed three lane condition for common center turn lane." The Bridge Street signal is being upgraded because of the new sidewalk. With new ramps and walkways reaching the corner, the signal equipment has to change too. This stretch is where the resolution's goal of better walking access to Oreland Station is most direct.
West zone: Twining Road to Garden Road
The western zone adds sidewalk from Twining Road to Garden Road, along with ADA ramps and what the application calls "access reconfiguration." It also uses the same three-lane layout with a shared center turn lane.
Drivers will notice the lane change most. Springfield's Fall/Winter 2026 newsletter calls it "a reconfiguration of travel lanes to improve safety." The application calls for a center turn lane in both the central and west zones. It does not describe dedicated bike lanes.
The budget shows that most of the money goes to building. Of the $1.228 million request, $915,000 is for construction, with a 10 percent contingency included.
How this fits the larger trail map
The Oreland Mill Road crossing matters more because of what Springfield has planned around it. The township's 2023 Trails and Connectivity Plan, adopted December 13, 2023, sketched several routes that meet near this part of Pennsylvania Avenue. When the plan was written, these were proposals:
- BN-2, Pennsylvania Avenue: a bike network route from the Whitemarsh Township line to the point where Pennsylvania Avenue enters Upper Dublin entirely. It connects to the Bridge Street Connector, the Camp Hill Road bike route and the Piszek Preserve trails.
- MT-4, Walnut Avenue Connector: a route from Oreland Mill Road to Sandy Run Park, with a later phase passing under the SEPTA line to Piszek Preserve.
- Oreland Rail Trail / Tank Car Trail: a proposed route along the former Plymouth Railroad right-of-way. It ends at Walnut Avenue and Oreland Mill Road and connects to the Walnut Avenue Connector and the Bridge Street Connector.
Oreland Mill Road shows up on the Walnut Avenue Connector, the rail-trail alignment and Piszek Preserve's second entrance. The grant puts a beacon crossing there, which ties the Upper Dublin and Springfield trail networks together at the place where Springfield's planned routes already meet. The 2023 plan treated Pennsylvania Avenue as one route across the township line. This grant is the first funded work built on that idea.
Where the project stands
The project went from first meetings to a funded grant in under two years. Construction has no date yet.
- Through 2025: Upper Dublin and Springfield staff meet after resident inquiries about pedestrian access.
- August 2025: The draft TASA application is submitted.
- September 2025: DVRPC and Montgomery County review the draft and send comments to address before the final submission.
- October 31, 2025: The final application goes in.
- November 11, 2025: Upper Dublin's board adopts the resolution approving the application and the local match.
- May 2026: The $1,228,212 award is announced, and Springfield publishes its notice on May 27.
- July 29, 2026: Upper Dublin's township manager reports a "Pennsylvania Ave TASA Team Meeting" with staff and consultants.
Springfield's Fall/Winter 2026 newsletter says construction timelines "are still to be determined, and will occur alongside PennDOT approval." Upper Dublin's resolution also mentions one more cost. Upper Dublin may have to pay a local match for the vehicle signal upgrades at Bridge Street during construction. Bridge Street is the most complicated piece because it involves a state road, a signal and pedestrian ramps all at once, so it is the part to watch as the schedule takes shape.
The best places to follow the next steps are Upper Dublin's Board of Commissioners meetings, since Upper Dublin is the lead applicant, and Springfield's township project updates. Both will be in the loop when PennDOT approves the work and a construction window is set.
After more than three decades in Montgomery County, Diane has watched projects like this change how a street works long before anyone starts building. If you have questions about Pennsylvania Avenue, Bridge Street or anywhere else around Oreland Station, Diane Reddington is glad to talk them through. Let's Connect.
