Bridge Will Close April 2 for Concrete Deck and Barrier Work
PennDOT District 8 today set advance work-zone signs and announced that starting Wednesday, April 2, the Mulberry Street Bridge in the City of Harrisburg will be closed to vehicular and pedestrian traffic for bridge rehabilitation until late December.
The 18-span Mulberry Street Bridge connects the Allison Hill section of Harrisburg to the Harrisburg Transportation Center and the downtown area spanning Cameron Street, Amtrak and Norfolk Southern rail lines, and Paxton Creek. The bridge was built in 1909 and rehabilitated in 1957 and 1982.
The $12,249,096 contract was awarded on Jan. 29 to Neshaminy Constructors, Inc. of Feasterville, Bucks County. Rehab work this year and in 2015 involves removing the 1957 bridge deck and placing a new deck over the original one, substructure and superstructure repairs, new concrete barrier between the roadway and the sidewalk, new pedestrian railing, new railroad protective fence, and new bridge lighting and drainage.
PennDOT advises travelers that starting April 2 the Mulberry Street Bridge will be closed to through traffic until late December. Until then, a detour which follows 13th Street, Market Street and 4th Street will be in place.
Though the overall project will take two years to complete, the bridge closure for vehicular and pedestrian traffic is scheduled for just this year. Construction crews will be working 10-hour days, six days per week. The bridge should reopen to traffic by late December of this year. In 2015, since most of the remaining concrete repairs will be underneath the deck, the bridge will be open to traffic.
You may recall that there is netting underneath the Mulberry Street Bridge where it crosses over Route 230, Cameron Street. This netting was installed in 2008 to prevent debris from falling onto vehicles and pedestrians below. It is the only state bridge with such netting in District 8. The upcoming project will remove the need for the netting.
Source: PennDOT Engineering District 8