Coplay Road, which links Cementon to Coplay, has frustrated motorists for years because of its rough condition. In fact, motorists are speaking out more than ever since the closing of the Coplay-Northampton Bridge and the roadway’s use as a detour.

Good news: The road is on Whitehall Township’s radar for a much-needed makeover, according to Mayor Edward D. Hozza Jr.

Hozza informed The Press Aug. 10 that the 2018 budget, which will be submitted to the board of commissioners for review and approval in the fall, will include repairs to Coplay Road.

Drivers say the northbound lane is in worse condition than southbound, but the roadway as a whole presents challenges to them.

Patches of concrete are visible in areas where the blacktop has peeled away. The township, several years ago, did a modest repaving and reconstruction of the roadway, but the results were far from a permanent fix.

According to Hozza, the road’s base, laid decades ago, is the problem.

At a recent commissioners workshop meeting, it was mentioned UGI will make improvements to the road and the upper end of the Fox Hollow neighborhood. The road is used heavily by trucks dumping materials from UGI gas line excavations into a quarry located east of North Coplay Road and west of the former Conrail/Norfolk Southern Rail Line along the Lehigh River.

Township Engineer Frank Clark told The Press the quarry has a two-year window before it is filled to capacity.