NORTHUMBERLAND -- Despite petitions and protests, weeks of traffic headaches in Sunbury and Northumberland begin today.

Early this morning, traffic will be detoured through Sunbury for three weeks during the reconstruction of a portion of Route 11 at the intersection with Duke Street.

Kinsley Construction Inc. will start the $605,250 reconstruction and resurfacing project this morning by breaking up and removing concrete pavement under the railroad underpass.

All traffic will be directed via Route 147 across the river into Sunbury and down Front Street to the Veterans Memorial Bridge, then back to Routes 11-15 in Shamokin Dam. The closure and detour are expected to last until June 23. The contractor will be working 12 hours a day, 7 days a week to complete the rehabilitation as quickly as possible.

Northumberland Mayor Gretchen Brosius said she had not fielded any phone calls objecting to the detour by Monday, but she expects her phone will start ringing off the hook once the traffic tie-ups begin.

The state Department of Transportation has placed advisory boards to encourage truckers to use Route 15 rather than Route 147 during the closure. Traffic signals will be retimed during the work to try to keep traffic flowing.

Bill Buckley, safety director for Milton Transportation Inc., said his drivers have been talking about the detour for three weeks. His drivers will avoid the Northumberland bottleneck, he said.

"They all know to go up to Milton and cross the river there to Route 15," he said Monday afternoon. "We know for our Furman's runs that adds about nine miles to the trip."

Later in the project, there will be a two-day weekend truck detour so the intersection of Duke Street and Route 11 can be completed with accelerated concrete. Trucks won't be allowed through this area because of the restricted turning area.

While acknowledging there will be traffic tie-ups and inconvenience for everyone involved, PennDOT and Northumberland officials opted for the three-week detour over the other option of keeping one lane open, which would have required two months to reconstruct the concrete section and three separate detours during that two-month period.

A petition was circulated by people who said they preferred the two-month option of keeping one lane of traffic open across the bridge, but state and borough officials had already agreed to the three-week full closure by the time the petition was received.

The contractor will reconstruct the existing road, including drainage improvements, concrete curbs and sidewalks, traffic signal updates and new pavement markings.

During the detour, access will remain open to Pineknotter Park, North Branch Auto Sales and the sewage treatment plant. Signs will be in place noting that fact.

Motorists in Northumberland wishing to access the park, car lot or sewer plant may follow Route 147 south to Route 61 across the Veterans Memorial Bridge and Route 11 north.