BUTLER TWP — A weeklong intensive assessment of Route 68 between Butler and Evans City kicked off on Monday.

Municipal leaders from Connoquenessing, Evans City, and Butler, Connoquenessing, Forward and Jackson townships discussed and listened to concerns about the road with the Southwest Pennsylvania Commission based in Pittsburgh, which is conducting the rapid assessment.

“Historically, corridor studies would be kind of a yearlong process,” said Doug Smith, planning director at SPC.

He said an operations and safety assessment of this nature, which will last through Friday, would provide more multimodal and community involvement while having less data.

Francis Smith and Lloyd Leslie of Connoquenessing said they think a turning lane stretching along Route 68 would help reduce the congestion.

“The 68 corridor has become a very congested corridor with a lot of impatient drivers,” Leslie said.

“There shouldn’t be passing areas,” Francis Smith said. “Turning lanes are the way to go.”

However, that may not be a reality soon since such a project on the 11-mile plus stretch or road would be costly.

“If there’s no money to do anything, then there’s no money,” Leslie said. “Maybe they’ll have fresh ideas.”

Lee Dyer, John McKinney and Linda Bicehouse, all of the Evans City Borough Council, have several concerns about Route 68, which is also Main Street in Evans City.

“We have the shortest distance of 68, but the largest problems,” Dyer said, who is council president. “We’re hoping the study will smooth traffic flow.”

More than 17,000 cars pass through Evans City on Route 68 each day. There are also several bisecting roads, the junction to Route 79, and other roads that cause congestion.

“Anyone who works in Pittsburgh and lives in Butler goes through Evans City,” Bicehouse said.

The assessment this week includes a riding tour during the day and at night, interviews with officials with school districts, police and county offices, and assembling and presenting results with key points and suggestions by the end of the week.

Representatives with the southwest commission, the state Department of Transportation and engineering consultant companies are involved in the assessment.