May 25, 2007 Times News

Public to decide optionon new J. Thorpe bridge

Three alternatives proposed by PennDOT

By JOSH CUSATISjcusatistnonline.com

Jim Thorpe residents, officials and business owners got their first look at plans to replace the ailing, 54-year-old Route 903 bridge on Thursday evening.

Almost 200 people turned out for a public meeting at Memorial Hall to listen as representatives from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation detailed plans to construct a new bridge crossing the Lehigh River and connecting the two sides of the borough.

Marc Radell, a PennDOT engineer working on the project, said that three alternatives for the new bridge's placement have been determined and that PennDOT has identified one of those as the preferred alternative; extending the bridge directly off of North Street to connect with Route 209 roughly 800 to 900 feet south of the Liberties.

The other two options, extending the bridge from River Street halfway between the existing bridge and the Jim Thorpe Market and extending the bridge from Front Street at the halfway point of Twining Park, are not favored by PennDOT because they do not change the current traffic flow along Route 903, which has two 90 degree turns; would require detours to construct and could negatively impact the railroad beneath and Twining Park.

PennDOT is allowing the public to decide which alternative they should proceed with through the comments made at the meeting, written comments mailed in and comments left at Rep. Keith McCall's (D-122nd) Web site at www.pahouse.com/mccall.

The old Route 903 bridge is deteriorating and yearly inspections are performed to ensure the safety of the bridge. A replacement of the bridge is necessary because maintaining the current bridge would be too costly and would do nothing to alleviate safety and traffic flow concerns.

"This is something that needs to be done," McCall said. "I am confident that this project is seen as a top priority. We now need to concern ourselves with expediting this project so that this bridge can be built as soon as possible."

PennDOT's preferred option off of North Street would include turning lanes off of Route 903 and a lit sidewalk separated from traffic by a concrete barrier. A traffic light would be installed at the intersection with Route 209, which would be widened to include turning lanes and a lit sidewalk to the borough's historic district by use of a retaining wall above the railroad tracks below. Whether a traffic light is needed at the opposite end of the bridge at Front Street would be determined during the final design phase of the project.

This option is preferred because it would not require any detours to construct; it would eliminate the two 90 degree turns along Route 903, thus improving safety and traffic flow; it would have no impact on the railroad and it would have minimal impact on any historical, archeological or environmental elements, however a lock from the former Lehigh Canal could be impacted.

Nearly all of the public comments made at the meeting seemed to support the North Street option, which is projected to cost between $12 million and $13 million, with several residents questioning how quickly the bridge could be built.

In the best case scenario, the design of the bridge could take three years and construction could take two years meaning that the bridge could possibly be done as early at 2012.

PennDOT currently expects this project to impact 17 properties on the east side of the borough with possibly six homes being purchased by the state using fair market value.

The specific design of the bridge has not yet been determined. Once an alternative is selected, PennDOT will begin detailing the design. Another public meeting is expected once a final design is completed.

Once the new bridge is completed, the old bridge would be demolished.