Northbound Side of New Markley Street Bridge Finishes this Winter
Winter 2020-21 – Construction of the northbound side of the new Markley Street bridge (see below) over Stony Creek, between Airy Street and Marshall Street, wraps up early this winter along with construction of new northbound pavement between Main Street and the bridge, including both approaches to the northbound side of the bridge.
Completion of the northbound Markley Street pavement and bridge will allow PennDOT’s contractor to shift a single lane of southbound Markley Street traffic onto the rebuilt bridge and pavement later this winter and begin demolition of the southbound side of the bridge in mid-to-late March.
Similar to what was done on the northbound side, the southbound side of the bridge will be disassembled, its abutments rebuilt, and a new superstructure and deck placed to complete the bridge later in 2021.
In addition to progressing with the bridge replacement, construction crews will begin excavation of the existing southbound Markley Street pavement between the bridge and Main Street. Once the old pavement is removed, work will get underway to install subsurface utilities and components of the new roadway drainage system.
North of the Stony Creek bridge, reconstruction of the northbound pavement will be completed in coordination with repairs to the stone arch bridge that crosses Markley Street diagonally through the intersection with Elm Street. Work on the Elm Street bridge and the intersection with Markley Street is expected to be underway in mid-2021.
Work is projected to start later in 2021 to improve the intersection of Markley Street and Main Street, including widening Main Street between Water Street and Barbadoes Street, starting on the north side, then moving to the south side, and finishing with the middle section.
The contractor’s engineer is developing a design in coordination with SEPTA and PennDOT to upgrade and improve equipment at the SEPTA Commuter Rail crossings that will include new gates and warning systems for the trains, pedestrians, and vehicles.
Work on this project is being done in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and state Department of Health guidance as well as a project-specific COVID-19 safety plan, which will include protocols for social distancing, use of face coverings, personal and job-site cleaning protocols, management of entries to the jobsite, special signage and relevant training.
Markley Street is closed to northbound traffic between Main Street and Elm Street during construction. Northbound U.S. 202 motorists heading to Markley Street are being detoured north on DeKalb Street (U.S. 202 North) in Bridgeport Borough to Johnson Highway in Norristown. Northbound motorists using the Dannehower Bridge will be required to turn east or west on Main Street in Norristown for the duration of construction.
Alan Myers, LP, of Worcester, Montgomery County is the general contractor on the $23,925,515 project which is financed with 80 percent federal and 20 percent state funds. Construction on the entire project is expected to be completed in 2023.