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Click diagram for details
PennDOT Church Road
Improvement Project:
Greenwood Avenue to Rices Mill Road.*
Excavation at Curtis Arboretum and removal of mature trees to accommodate widening of Church Road and Greenwood Avenue.
Contact your Commissioner, PennDOT, or other state official with any concerns.
The addition of two new left turn lanes, one in each direction, on Church Road at Greenwood Avenue.
An additional through lane with a shared right turn for westbound Church Road
at Greenwood Avenue
A dedicated right turn lane into a fade-in lane on eastbound Church Road from Greenwood Avenue.
For additional details read the current Project FAQ
Older posts are PennDOT FAQs and PennDOT Fast Facts.
PennDOT plans to make major changes to the intersection of Church Road and Greenwood Avenue in Wyncote to improve the flow of traffic by widening the road and adding several turn lanes. Identified as Alternative 13, this plan was chosen for its minimal impact on the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College property. The project significantly impacts historic Curtis Arboretum, six residential parcels, and requires a stormwater runoff management system.
All of the technical drawings and photographs on this and other related pages are from the PennDOT Powerpoint presentation at the April 13, 2018 Consulting Parties Meeting or the from April 4, 2019 PennDOT Open House, as was any related information.
This section is currently being edited to reflect the changes in the January 2023 plan. They are:
- A decrease in the widening of Church Road from east of Greenwood Ave to the Greenwood Church intersection.
- The addition of a sidewalk on the south side of Church Rd. from Randall Rd. to Greenwood Ave. with an additional crosswalk.
- Increasing the amount of wall that PennDOT will reconstruct.
- A modification in the plan to replant trees in Curtis Arboretum.
The CCC has been involved with this project since 2018. This page reflects information and events over that time.
Click diagram for details
Click diagram for details
The addition of sidewalks on a portion of both sides of Church Road between Greenwood and Rices Mill and a portion of Greenwood Avenue.
Major Project Components
The addition of a stormwater management system that includes a detention basin on the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College property to accommodate the additional storm water run-off that will be created by the additional paving.
Click diagram for details
January 2024
Work is Currently Proceeding. The project is expected to be completed by Fall 2026
April 2023 Update
The project is scheduled to being the fall of 2023. Preliminary utility work will being on May 1.
April 2022 Update
This project is scheduled for completion in 2023.
May Update 2019
On May 15, 2019 the Cheltenham Board of Commissioners approved a Resolution opposing the current intersection design and requesting PennDOT attend a Public Works meeting to make a formal presentation to the commissioners and the public.
Township Commissioners and Staff will meet on June12 with PennDOT and others to discuss the project design. Representative Steve McCarter and Senator Art Haywood have been invited to this meeting. A summary and outcome of the meeting will be shared at an upcoming Public Works Committee meeting.
View PennDOT's response to comments submitted at the April 4, 2019 Open House or those received by May 2, 2019.
Read the July 2024 PennDOT Press Release.
Would the plan, with it’s multiple turn lanes, put emphasis on the safety of pedestrians crossing at the intersection? Would the plan give pedestrians on the north side of Church road safe access to the arboretum to attend public events?
Should a simpler plan with fewer lanes and less impact on the arboretum and surrounding area be considered?
Would the storm water management system prevent storm water runoff traveling down Greenwood Avenue hill to the low point at Glenside Avenue - already besieged with flooding problems?
Would this plan actually encourage more drivers to use Church Road and create more congestion rather than less?
Were current traffic growth assumptions accounted for when considering current lifestyle changes with more people working from home?