Bridge traffic ahead: Crews to soon begin 4 years of work on bridges crossing the Susquehanna River

• By Chris Reber/ LNP | LancasterOnline

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Beginning next week, motorists coming in and out of Lancaster County using two bridges in Columbia can expect lots of construction work on the bridges over the next four years.

On Aug. 28, crews from Chester County-based contractor J.D. Eckman will begin preparing the Wrights Ferry Bridge to handle the extra traffic coming from the nearby Veterans Memorial Bridge that will be closed for two years in 2025 for a massive restoration project.

Work on the 51-year-old Wrights Ferry Bridge, which carries Route 30 over the Susquehanna River, will last 14 months, according to the state Department of Transportation. The bridge connects Columbia to Hellam Township in York County.

“It’s to achieve a longer life and push it out for several decades,” Derek Mitch, PennDOT District 8 bridge engineer, said of the $5.2 million Wrights Ferry Bridge project.

While two lanes of traffic will remain open during the 1.5-mile median barrier project that includes protecting the Route 30 bridge against cracks, traffic will be shifted away from the median to the right lane and shoulder.

More than 56,000 vehicles use the Wrights Ferry Bridge daily.

Once work is completed on the Wrights Ferry Bridge, PennDOT can begin working to extend the life of the 94-year-old Veterans Memorial Bridge as part of a $79 million restoration project.

The 1.26-mile bridge that carries Route 462 over the Susquehanna River between Columbia and Wrightsville in York County is considered the longest concrete arch bridge in the world. More importantly, the historic bridge provides a nearby option when there is a crash or backup on the Wrights Ferry Bridge. The two bridges are separated by less than a half mile on the Lancaster County side of the river.

Part of the Wrights Ferry Bridge project includes preparing it for the additional traffic that will come from the Veterans Memorial Bridge when it is closed for its restoration project. More than 10,500 vehicles use the Veterans Memorial Bridge daily.

“When the 462 bridge is under construction, this has to remain open at all times,” Columbia Borough Manager Mark Stivers said of the Wrights Ferry Bridge. “Or if it closes, we have to get it open as quickly as possible.”

‘A different approach’

The Veterans Memorial Bridge project aimed at extending the bridge’s life for at least another 50 years has been in the works since 2017 and was supposed to get underway in spring 2024. But a June inspection by PennDOT revealed sections of the structure’s deck were in worse condition than previously thought, and a 10-ton weight limit was imposed. There was no weight limit prior to the inspection.

“We felt it would be more prudent to step back,” Mitch said. “We’re going to have to take a different approach.”

The weight restriction is in place primarily to prevent further deterioration to the bridge. Mitch said there are currently no safety issues with the bridge.

The surrounding municipalities respond to incidents together and have shared concerns about whether they can effectively respond to emergencies on the bridge when their trucks exceed the weight limit.

“We want to make sure the people on the bridge are safe, and our first responders are safe when they have to go out there and perform a rescue,” Stivers said.

Eric White, a member of Wrightsville Borough Council, said the weight limit has put more pressure on borough and township roads. He said local businesses such as Donsco, a foundry with locations on both sides of the river, often drove loads across the bridge but now use the Wrights Ferry Bridge and other local roads along a detour.

“It’s going to impact our lives, and it’s going to impact a local major employer,” White said.

Despite the disruptions, local leaders understand the need for the project to maintain the bridge in the long run. The project, which will improve bridge access for Columbia and Wrightsville, calls for bike lanes – a key addition in an area where rails to trails have become a major tourism draw – and new, wider sidewalks. In Wrightsville, a roundabout will replace a five-point intersection at the end of the bridge.

White said he would rather have a traffic light than a roundabout in Wrightsville, but added he supports the project after seeing wood cribbing blocks supporting a section of the bridge and a large piece of concrete that fell off the bridge onto a borough street, requiring a backhoe to remove it.

“That’s the current state of the bridge,” he said.

The project will also include changes aimed at addressing mayfly swarms on the bridge.

Columbia will be able to adjust the color and intensity of the bridge’s period-correct lights, which it installed in 2013 and are believed to attract the insects. Currently, the borough turns off the lights during the summer months.

PennDOT will continue to inspect parts of the Veterans Memorial Bridge on a monthly basis to make sure no further restrictions are required.

“All of this effort is to prevent that type of situation, to make sure that those communities have that connection, at least for the majority of their traffic,” Mitch said.