Work to expand north shore access to Moraine State Park will shut down a Route 422 on-ramp near the park starting Thursday.

Drivers on West Park Road won’t have eastbound access to Route 422 as of about 6:30 a.m. Thursday. Access is planned to reopen Aug. 2. The construction’s official detour will direct traffic south down West Park Road to Burnside Road, then west to Perry Highway. Eastbound drivers can access Route 422 by traveling north along Perry Highway. Posted signs will denote the detour.

The goal is to improve access to Moraine State Park, in particular to provide a route from Interstate 79 to the park. The project is in both Muddy Creek and Worth Townships.

At this particular interchange workers will construct a looped access ramp.

Other work is expected to finish this fall. The project will include a new, two-way road to replace the Route 8002 ramp and the expansion of I-79’s interchange with Route 422, which will include new traffic lights.

Route 422 carries about 11,000 vehicles a day, according to Pennsylvania Department of Transportation traffic data.

Mount Pleasant-based Gulisek Construction is handling the $4.46 million project.

Deborah Casadei, a PennDOT spokesman, said other sections of the project are not yet started.

“This is just the next step that needs to be done for the entire project,” Casadei said.