The PA Turnpike Commission is considering replacing the span connecting Lower Bucks County and New Jersey. A survey is open to commuters.
Dino Ciliberti, Patch Staff
LOWER BUCKS COUNTY, PA —The Delaware River Bridge may be rehabilitated or replaced and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission wants the public to provide some input on the future of the overpass between Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority —with oversight from the Federal Highway Administration —are currently re-evaluating rehabilitation and replacement options for the existing 70-year-old bridge.
Commuters are encouraged to take an online survey on what should be done with the bridge that spans Bristol Borough and Bristol Township in Lower Bucks County and Florence and Burlington County.
The survey is open until Jan. 3. Click here to take the survey
The bridge's future is tied into Stage 3 of the PA Turnpike's Interstate 95 Interchange Program.
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A 2003 alternative called for building a new bridge to carry eastbound (i.e. I-95 NB to N.J.) traffic and rehabilitating the existing bridge to carry westbound (i.e. I-95 SB to PA) traffic.
In 2017, a fracture of one of the existing bridge approach trusses required a full closure of more than six weeks while the bridge was fully inspected and repaired.
The full closure resulted in extensive detours for the about 67,000 daily vehicles traveling this section of Interstate 95.
Since the closure, the tolling agencies have programmed funding to complete an Alternatives Analysis, Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and Preliminary Engineering.
The team is now considering a range of alternatives for rehabilitation or replacement of the bridge.
An Alternatives Analysis is in progress to evaluate potential replacement alignments and bridge types. This will determine the alternatives to be studied in more detail along with the existing bridge rehabilitation option.
Once the Alternatives Analysis is completed and the determination for rehabilitation or replacement is made, preliminary design activities will continue into 2027.
The SEIS will concurrently evaluate changes since 2003 for the range of alternatives, assess impacts, and obtain input from federal, state, and local regulatory agencies and the public.
Once preliminary engineering and environmental clearance are complete, the next steps are to complete the final design, permitting, and construction.
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