King of Prussia – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation today announced that construction will begin Monday (April 19) on a $2,212,369 project to rehabilitate the deteriorated Ridge Pike Bridge over Sanatoga Creek in Lower Pottsgrove Township, Montgomery County. The project is scheduled to finish in December 2010.
Crews will work the next eight months to rehabilitate the two-span, structurally deficient stone-masonry arch bridge that was built in the mid-1800s and rehabilitated in 1914. The bridge is 50 feet long and 41 feet wide. It carries approximately 14,000 vehicles a day.
Motorists can expect to face traffic pattern shifts when driving on the bridge prior to June 13 and after August 31 as crews perform work on the structure. One travel lane will be maintained in each direction while crews work weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and some weekends from 6 p.m. Fridays to 6 a.m. Mondays.
From June 13 to August 31, the Ridge Pike Bridge will be closed and detoured to allow the contractor to make major structural repairs. A posted detour will take motorists over Evergreen Road, Route 422 and Armand Hammer Boulevard during this time. Local access will be maintained up to the bridge and access to business driveways near the structure will be maintained during construction.
“We have scheduled this project so it results in the least amount of disruption to local residents, business owners and commuters,” PennDOT District Executive Lester C. Toaso said. “While the majority of the work will be done under traffic, we must close the bridge for two months to safely rebuild major portions of the bridge.”
Toaso said the contractor will face a $9,400 a day charge for each day the detour is in place after August 31.
The improvement project consists of replacing a deteriorated stone wingwall, which is an extension of a support abutment that serves as a retaining wall; removing the old pavement from the bridge and building a new concrete slab deck with an asphalt overlay; removing the deteriorated stone walls along the bridge and replacing them with concrete walls covered with stone veneers; and repairing the existing stone arches and remaining three stone wingwalls.
The Crossing Construction Company, Inc. of Washington Crossing, Pa. is the general contractor on the project that is financed with 80 percent federal and 20 percent state funds.
In 2004, PennDOT performed emergency work on the Ridge Pike Bridge to repair a stone wall that was partially damaged. “Six years ago we attended to an immediate structural issue when part of the stone wall bulged out,” Toaso said. “Now, we’re undertaking a more comprehensive project to rebuild several parts of the bridge and address inherent causes of deterioration so they do not continue to occur.”
PennDOT reminds motorists they can log on to 511pa.com or call 511 from any phone to check traffic conditions on major highways before heading out.
For more PennDOT information, visit www.dot.state.pa.us.