At the Tobyhanna Township supervisors' meeting on March 17, 2025, a resident used public comment to ask for an update on "the project on the off-ramp at 380." Township Manager Robert Bartal said the township was still obtaining rights-of-way. After that, the job would go out to bid, and "they anticipate construction should begin early next year."
Early 2026 has come and gone. The southbound exit still comes off the I-380 overpass onto Route 940 where it always has. That makes it easy to assume nothing happened. The township's own 2026 agendas show something else. Work did begin, at the spot the plan has always put first.
The Ramp Was Always Phase Two
The project was laid out in a set order years ago. In October 2018, the Pocono Record described a plan of roughly $5 million in three phases:
- A new entrance for Stillwater Estates.
- Realignment of the I-380 southbound off-ramp.
- Widening of Route 940, with new intersections.
The first item gets far less attention than the ramp, but the order makes sense. The ramp is moving west along Route 940, toward the area where Stillwater traffic now enters. At a September 5, 2017 work session, the township's study showed the Stillwater entrance relocated to FedEx Drive. It put the Stillwater piece alone at $1.1 million. Stillwater has to move before the ramp can.
The neighborhood has pushed back on this before. In May 2014, the Pocono Record reported that Stillwater Estates residents objected to an earlier plan to line up Long Pond Road with the off-ramp, because it would have removed a left turn they relied on. The FedEx Drive entrance in later designs grew out of that history.
What the 2026 Agendas Show
No ribbon cutting or press release marked the start of Phase I. It shows up in line items from the township's contractor, Pioneer Construction Company, Inc., on the supervisors' agendas:
- October 20, 2025: Supervisors approved a $113,465 change in scope from Pioneer Construction for I-380 project Basin No. 1.
- February 2, 2026: The agenda listed a proposal to buy traffic-signal materials for the Stillwater Drive and Route 940 intersection.
- May 18, 2026: The agenda listed a Pioneer change order request of $12,840 for "Stillwater Drive Relocation Temporary Traffic Signal Rental for January-April."
- June 15, 2026: The agenda listed Pioneer requests of $230,440 for wetland mitigation and $12,445 to remove and replace an outlet-control structure.
A rental bill for temporary signals covering January through April 2026 means Stillwater Drive relocation work was running on the ground in the first months of 2026. That lines up with Bartal's "early next year," applied to the phase that comes first. Agendas list what supervisors will consider, not what they approved. The pattern is still clear: basins, wetlands, signals, and a relocated drive. That is how a Route 940 project begins when it starts away from the overpass.
The published records do not show that the ramp realignment or the Route 940 widening has gone under construction. They also show no completion date for either.
Why "Next Year" Kept Moving
Read side by side, the forecasts form a pattern. Each one was made at a different step in a process with several gates: permits, then property, then bids.
| When it was said | Who said it | Start date projected |
|---|---|---|
| October 2018 | Township, per the Pocono Record | Spring 2019, with all three phases finished in about a year |
| March 2020 | Pennoni's project engineer | The following year, pending PennDOT and DEP permits |
| March 2025 | Township Manager Robert Bartal | Early 2026, after rights-of-way and bidding |
The design team saw this coming. The same 2017 work session that sketched a 550-foot southbound deceleration ramp named design and right-of-way legal issues as the main risks to the schedule. The years that followed show those risks playing out:
- In September 2023, supervisors approved payment to PPL to relocate poles along Route 940.
- In July 2024, supervisors authorized a partial taking of one right-of-way parcel.
- In October 2024, they approved a right-of-way grant to Verizon and a right-of-way waiver.
The delays also triggered more paperwork. On June 19, 2026, PennDOT approved an environmental reevaluation of the project. The box checked as the reason reads "Three or more years since major authorization or phase change." Waiting long enough sets off another review.
Funding has kept coming in throughout. In September 2022, the township reported nine grants totaling $8,675,680 against a then-estimated cost of $7,978,147. That estimate left out Phase II property acquisitions. Two more awards followed. On December 23, 2025, the state announced $800,000 for roadway realignment and widening at I-380 and Route 940. In January 2026, Rep. Jack Rader announced $500,000 from the Multimodal Transportation Fund for the southbound off-ramp realignment, which the Times News reported on January 22. The records do not say whether those two awards overlap, so they should be read as separate announcements, not added together.
Where the New Exit Will Land
PennDOT's June 2026 record gives the clearest description so far of the finished project. Under the name Village of Pocono Summit Improvements, it covers widening Route 940, adding turn lanes and pedestrian improvements, and moving the I-380 southbound exit ramp from the overpass to a point 600 feet west of FedEx Drive. A second PennDOT entry, Tobyhanna Pocono Summit West, covers the ramp along with the Route 940 intersections at FedEx Drive, Stillwater, and Long Pond Road.
For local drivers, that puts the work on the stretch of 940 they already know. It includes the Exxon that lists itself at "RT 940 (I-380 EXIT 3)" and stays open 24 hours, the Enterprise rental branch at 2671 Route 940, and Jimmy John's at 2693 Route 940. The 2017 study also included a secondary access to the post office. After the ramp moves, southbound I-380 traffic will reach Route 940 west of the overpass, closer to the FedEx Drive and Stillwater intersections than to the bridge.
The Village Plan Behind the Road
The road was never planned as the whole project. In 2018, then-Township Manager John Jablowski described the road design as a way to create a "village atmosphere" in Pocono Summit. That January, as executive director of the township's new Economic Development Authority, Jablowski proposed a mission statement calling for "thoughtful, well-planned economic and village development." He named Pocono Summit East and West, the areas on either side of I-380, as the township's current focus.
A village-style business district needs sewer service, and the sewer plan has moved even more slowly than the road. In November 2017, the proposed service area ran from Pocono Mountain High School to the 940 and 380 intersection. Officials said the Pinecrest plant was handling about 100,000 gallons a day, though it was approved for 500,000, and that DEP approval was still an obstacle. In March 2021, the township treated Pocono Summit West as the first area for proposed commercial zoning-map changes because of the transportation project. In September 2025, supervisors allowed RKR Hess to share earlier Pocono Summit West sewage studies with T&M Consultants, at the request of a developer the minutes do not name. No business or developer has been publicly attached to the village plan in the records.
What Is on the Table This Fall
The September 21, 2026 agenda included two items tied to Pocono Summit. Resolution 2026-017 would authorize the board chair to sign an agreement with PennDOT for additional grant funding for the I-380 project. Resolution 2026-016 would adopt the Pinecrest Pump Station Act 537 Sewage Facilities Planning Special Study.
For the week of October 4, the Times News lists a daytime lane restriction on Route 940 from I-380 to Route 611, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday and Friday. The notice does not link it to the Pocono Summit project. No ramp closure, detour plan, or completion date for the realignment has been published yet. The township's agendas are still the most reliable place to see the next phase coming.
Road projects like this one can affect commutes, buyer questions, and how a property near Route 940 compares with others nearby. At Kelly Realty Group, we track township records along with the market so our clients know what is planned near a property before they make a decision. If you own near Exit 293 and want to talk through how the work could affect a future sale, schedule your free Poconos market consultation.
