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    • PennDOT to dismantle failing Skinners Falls Bridge before winter
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    PennDOT to dismantle failing Skinners Falls Bridge before winter

    Online Niel Posted on

    The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has announced plans to demolish the historic but damaged building Skinners Falls Bridge out of concern for public safety, according to press release of November 7.

    The Upper Delaware Council (UDC) reported that this is a dismantling, as opposed to a demolition, with the goal of potentially rebuilding the structure that spans the Upper Delaware River.

    The 1902 single-lane suspension bridge has been closed to all vehicular and pedestrian traffic for five years, pending a determination of its final fate. It carries Route 1002 over the Delaware River from Milanville in Wayne County, Pennsylvania to Skinners Falls in Sullivan County, New York.

    To explain to the public the reasoning behind this action, PennDOT will host an online public meeting on Thursday, November 14 at 2:00 p.m. Participants can join the Microsoft Teams meeting by https://bit.ly/SkinnersMeeting. It will be recorded and posted on the PennDOT website.

    On August 2, UDC notified PennDOT that an inspection of the bridge was urgently needed because heavily rusted metal parts were seen falling into the river. PennDOT announced Aug. 29 that it will remove components of the free-standing bridge, a project that is expected to continue through this fall.

    On Nov. 7, following a recent inspection of the bridge, PennDOT announced that “out of an abundance of caution,” the bridge “must be removed in the interest of public safety, particularly for Delaware River navigation and recreational traffic.”

    “PennDOT will work with our federal and state agency partners, along with those in New York, to begin removing the bridge this calendar year, as it is critical that the bridge be removed before the onset of winter,” PennDOT’s announcement said.

    The issue sparked a lively discussion at the Nov. 7 UDC meeting in Narrowsburg, New York.

    UDC chief executive Laurie Ramie said the press release was “immediately misinterpreted” because it did not mention what happens after the bridge is removed.

    Ramie said Susan Hazleton, assistant district engineer for design at PennDOT, called that morning and shared with UDC and the National Park Service that “it really should be taken down, but the pieces will be saved and cataloged and stored that way so that there is still a possibility that it can be reassembled and rehabilitated”.

    Ramie said the outcome may be a “long haul,” but PennDOT will explain at the virtual meeting what the emergency inspections revealed and what engineers say. Ramie reported from Hazleton that “the urgency is that they fear it could collapse into the river before it can be rehabilitated,” and the winter freeze/thaw cycle could make the situation worse.

    Permits must be obtained from multiple jurisdictions, a “Navigation aids“The set of plan and a taxiway put in the river, connected to Ramie. It may also require a substantial compliance review by the UDC to make a recommendation to the NPS because the state project is in the federally zoned river corridor.

    Ramie said PennDOT also plans to have an in-person meeting before the Damascus Town supervisors at 7 p.m. Nov. 18.

    NPS Upper Delaware Superintendent Lindsey Kurnath said PennDOT wants everything approved so they can begin Dec. 1. “We try to be good partners. The last thing anyone wants is for the bridge to fall and injure someone or be damaged, so not much could go back,” Kurnath said.

    Kurnath said the NPS has a lot of “big questions” to resolve before Dec. 1, related to what’s allowed under the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and listing the bridge as one of the Park Service’s “Outstanding and Outstanding Values” National, which the NPS seeks to protect.

    She said PennDOT also wants to avoid disrupting the spring river recreation season.

    Various questions and comments swirled among the UDC representatives. Berlin City Representative Al Henry wondered how much it would cost to reassemble what he likened to a “big puzzle.”

    “Once it comes down, you’ll never see it assembled again,” added Henry.

    Henry also warned that disaster could happen if the river ice breaks. “That way will be down in Darbytown,” he said, about six miles downstream).

    “It’s borderline crazy,” said Shohola Township Representative Aaron Robinson. “If you’re going to reassemble it, are you going to reassemble it with tired, rusted, aged steel, or duplicate it with new fabrication?”

    Ramie said there will likely be “a lot of angry people demanding answers” at the virtual meeting. She expressed gratitude that PennDOT contacted UDC directly. “We don’t want the result of the bridge collapsing, but we’re also mindful of public safety,” she said.

    The bridge has undergone emergency repairs in recent years and its weight limit has been reduced twice. The closure of the span interrupts immediate access to emergency services from the New York side, as well as public use. For the past five years, PennDOT has conducted public meetings and a survey. The UDC strongly advocated saving the bridge, calling for its rehabilitation and preservation of its historic character.

    Peter Becker has worked at the Tri-County Independent or its predecessor publications since 1994. Contact him at [email protected] or 570-253-3055 ext. 1588.

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