King of Prussia – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation today announced that the Ridge Pike Bridge over Sanatoga Creek in Lower Pottsgrove Township, Montgomery County, will be closed and detoured from June 14, 2010 to August 31, 2010 as part of the $2.2 million project to rehabilitate the deteriorated structure.
When the Ridge Pike span closes for about two months for major structural repairs, a posted detour will take motorists over Evergreen Road, Route 422 and Armand Hammer Boulevard. Local access will be maintained up to the bridge and access to business driveways near the bridge will be maintained.
“While the majority of the construction is being done under traffic, we must close the bridge for most of the summer to safely rebuild major portions of the structure,” PennDOT District Executive Lester C. Toaso said. The contractor will face a $9,400 a day charge for each day the detour is in place after August 31.
In addition to the upcoming bridge closure, the contractor will work weeknights from Tuesday (June 1) through Friday, June 11 from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. to reconstruct a wingwall. One lane in each direction will remain open on Ridge Pike during this overnight operation.
PennDOT began construction on April 19, 2010 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.
The project is scheduled to finish in December 2010.
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 $2,212,369 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.