PennDOT and National Park Service Open New Sullivan’s Bridge for Bicycle and Pedestrian Travel in Valley Forge National Historical Park

PennDOT and National Park Service Open New Sullivan's Bridge for Bicycle
and Pedestrian Travel in Valley Forge National Historical Park

8/19/2016-West Norriton Township, PA

PennDOT Secretary of Transportation Leslie S. Richards this morning joined
the
National Park Service and federal, state and local officials to open
Sullivan's
Bridge – the new, four-span, bicycle and pedestrian trail bridge spanning
the
Schuylkill River in Valley Forge National Historical Park (VFNHP).

"Sullivan's Bridge is a wonderful addition to Valley Forge National
Historical
Park and to the region's Circuit Trails network," Richards said. "This new
trail bridge greatly enhances recreational mobility in the park and it
creates
a new multi-use trail connection between the park and the Schuylkill River
Trail."

"We're delighted that this day has come," said VFNHP Superintendent Kate
Hammond. "This month, the National Park Service is observing its 100th
anniversary, and what better way than to open this wonderful bridge that
will
be a linchpin in connecting the park with all the people who use hundreds
of
miles of regional trails."

With its opening, Sullivan's Bridge becomes a critical link in the Circuit
Trails, a vast regional trail network that is composed of hundreds of miles
of
interconnected trails in the region. The bridge's location in VFNHP further

connects the Circuit Trails between Montgomery County and Chester County.

Named for Major General John Sullivan, the officer who was charged by
General
George Washington with building a bridge across the Schuylkill River during
the
1777-78 Valley Forge winter encampment of the Continental Army, the
concrete,
bicycle-and-pedestrian-trail bridge is 14 feet wide and 604 feet long. The
bridge features an observation area where trail users can stop midway to
view
the Schuylkill River and VFNHP. Construction began in March 2014.

Prior to the opening of Sullivan's Bridge, pedestrians and bicyclists
crossed
the Schuylkill River in this area by walking on a narrow boardwalk path on
the
west side of U.S. 422. This path, which was 4 feet, 6 inches wide, opened
in
1994 following the closure of the Old Betzwood Bridge over the Schuylkill
River
in VFNHP. The Old Betzwood Bridge closed in 1993 and was removed in 1995.

In addition to building Sullivan's Bridge on the alignment of the former
Old
Betzwood Bridge, PennDOT's contractor replaced the nearby South Trooper
Road
bridge over the Schuylkill River Trail with a 60-foot long reinforced
concrete
arch structure; rehabilitated the 73-foot long bridge over Norfolk Southern

railroad tracks; replaced the South Trooper Road pavement with a 14-foot
wide
asphalt trail between Station Lane (on the south side of the river) and the

Riverview entrance (on the north side of the river); and rehabilitated
South
Trooper Road to accommodate two 14-foot wide travel lanes between the
Riverview
entrance and Susan Lane.

J.D. Eckman, Inc. of Atglen, Chester County, was the general contractor on
the
$9,271,458 construction project, which was financed with 100 percent
federal
funds.

PennDOT will transfer ownership of the right-of-way and bridges built under

this project to Upper Merion Township and West Norriton Township. Under a
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), the National Park Service will own and
maintain
Sullivan's Bridge and the adjacent bridge over Norfolk Southern railroad
tracks. West Norriton Township will own South Trooper Road where it's open
to
vehicular traffic north of the Schuylkill River and the South Trooper Road
bridge over the Schuylkill River Trail.

Engineering design of the Sullivan's Bridge project was managed under a
local
agreement between PennDOT and the Upper Merion Transportation Authority, in

close coordination with Upper Merion Township, West Norriton Township and
the
National Park Service.

Sullivan's Bridge is part of the Schuylkill River Crossing Complex of
transportation improvement projects that are designed to enhance
multi-modal
travel on U.S. 422 between the Route 363 (Trooper Road) and Route 23
(Valley
Forge Road) interchanges. In addition to Sullivan's Bridge, the
improvements
include the $97 million project currently under construction to rebuild
U.S.
422 between the two interchanges and build new, wider bridges over the
Schuylkill River, Schuylkill River Trail, South Trooper Road and Norfolk
Southern railroad tracks; the recent opening of two additional ramps built
to
complete the U.S. 422/Route 363 (Trooper Road) Interchange; and the
relocation
of North Gulph Road at Route 23 (Valley Forge Road) in VFNHP, which is
expected
to move to construction in 2019.

For more details on improvements being made along the U.S. 422 Corridor,
visit
www.422improvements.com.

Motorists can check conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles by
visiting
www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides
traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and
access
to more than 770 traffic cameras.

For more PennDOT information, visit www.penndot.gov. Follow Local PennDOT
Information on Twitter at www.twitter.com/511PAPhilly, and follow the
department on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/pennsylvaniadepartmentoftransportation and Instagram at
www.instagram.com/pennsylvaniadot.

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