PennDOT announced that construction is scheduled to begin Monday, November 14 on an $11,766,000 project to replace six structurally deficient culverts in Bucks, Chester and Delaware counties and rehabilitate four structurally deficient bridges in Bucks, Chester, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties.
The first bridge to move to construction is the Oxford Valley Road bridge over U.S. 1 in Langhorne Borough, Bucks County. The bridge will remain open to traffic while the contractor repairs structural damage to the bridge which it sustained when it was struck by an oversized truck on June 29, 2015. Crews will replace two steel beams and repair three steel beams. Construction on the bridge is scheduled to finish in June 2017.
On Monday, November 14 and Tuesday, November 15, crews will work from 9:00 PM to 5:00 AM the following morning to install concrete barriers on the center of the bridge. Repairs will be made under three separate traffic patterns. In phase one, the center of the bridge will be closed and traffic will shift to the far sides of the structure. This pattern will be in place through February 2017. In phase two, all traffic will run on the south side of the structure from February through April 2017. In phase three, all traffic will shift to the north side of the bridge from April through June 2017.
The three span, steel-I beam bridge was built in 1972. It is 167 feet long and 90 feet wide. The bridge is not structurally deficient or posted with a weight limit. The structure carries 16,000 vehicles a day.
In addition, northbound and southbound U.S. 1 will be closed weeknights at the Oxford Valley Road interchange from Wednesday, November 16 through Tuesday, November 22, from 9:00 PM to 5:00 AM for the installation of protective shielding on the Oxford Valley Road overpass. During the road closure, U.S. 1 motorists will exit at Oxford Valley Road and then re-enter the highway at the entrance ramps at the interchange.
PennDOT’s contractor also will begin work Monday, November 14, on the Route 663 (Layfield Road) bridge over the Perkiomen Creek in Upper Hanover Township, Montgomery County. Crews will rehabilitate the five-span structure by replacing the bridge deck. The Route 663 (Layfield Road) bridge will be closed and detoured until August 2017.
The five-span, steel-I beam bridge was built in 1956. It is 198 feet long and 30 feet wide. The structurally-deficient structure is posted with a 15-ton weight limit. The bridge carries an average of 9,700 vehicles a day.
During construction, Route 663 (Layfield Road) will be closed between Kutztown Road and Schoolhouse Road. The posted detour will take through traffic over Route 29 (Gravel Pike), Route 100 and Route 73 (Big Road).
Motorists are advised to allow extra time when traveling through the construction areas because slowdowns may occur.
Under this project, the contractor also will replace deteriorated culverts at the following locations: State Road bridge over a branch of Cooks Creek in Springfield Township, Bucks County; Rocky Ridge Road over a branch of Tohickon Creek, Richland Township, Bucks County; White Horse Road over a branch of Pickering Creek in Schuylkill Township, Chester County; Route 282 (Creek Road) over a branch of Brandywine Creek in East Brandywine Township, Chester County; Route 82 (Doe Run Road) over a branch of Cooks Creek in East Fallowfield Township, Chester County; and MacDade Boulevard over the Muckinipattis Creek in Glenolden Borough, Delaware County.
In addition, the contract includes concrete and sub-structure repairs on the Edenton Road bridge over Rattlesnake Run in Upper Oxford Township, Chester County, and the Torresdale Avenue bridge over Academy Road in Philadelphia.
Loftus Construction, Inc. of Cinnaminson, N.J., is the general contractor on this bridge improvement contract that is financed with 100 percent state funds through Act 89, Pennsylvania’s transportation plan.
All work on the project is expected to be completed in August 2018.
