Warminster Road Bridge Reopening Wednesday

HATBORO, PA —PennDOT is giving residents a Valentine's Day present: their bridge back.

Borough officials said the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has informed them that the Warminster Road Bridge —closed for nearly a year due to numerous delays —is expected to reopen on Wednesday.

PennDOT initially said the project to replace the 136-year-old bridge that goes over the Pennypack Creek and connects the borough with Upper Moreland Township would take six months.

Borough officials said they do not have an exact time for when the bridge will open but will provide an update once PennDOT gives the nod.

The opening is weather-dependent, and borough officials said they have no control over the schedule.

PennDOT is replacing the 136-year-old concrete-encased steel beam structure with a prestressed concrete box beam bridge that will be 110 feet long and 38 feet wide.

The new bridge will allow for wider lanes and shoulders to improve traffic safety for the estimated 11,783 motorists who travel over the structure daily.

Other improvements under this project include constructing a five-foot-wide sidewalk for pedestrians; installing new signs, pavement markings, guide rail, and a pedestrian rapid flashing beacon signal on the south approach; and resurfacing the approach roadways.

Allen Myers, LP of Worcester, PA is the general contractor on the $3,830,278 project, which is financed with 100 percent state funds.

PennDOT told the borough that the contractor will return in the spring to complete additional work on the project. That date has not been determined.

There will be an interruption to traffic once again to complete the final work, officials said.

"This is a state road and a state project that needed to be done," borough officials said in a Facebook post." There was a lot of work involved under and around the bridge involving utilities that occurred before the bridge replacement began, it was not as simple as many have suggested."

Borough officials said while many travelers were disrupted and traffic increased throughout the borough, the project was necessary.

Besides the bridge being replaced, the project also included new sidewalks, lighting, utility upgrades, and much-needed stormwater improvements.