Walkway At Washington Crossing Bridge To Close For Repair Work

WASHINGTON CROSSING, PA — A planned uninterrupted closure of the pedestrian walkway at the Washington Crossing toll-supported bridge is scheduled to begin at approximately 7 a.m. on Monday, July 21, and end by 5 p.m. on Friday, July 25, the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission announced this week.

The walkway closure will allow a commission contractor to partially replace portions of the bridge’s Pennsylvania approach sidewalk and railings. The work will involve removal of existing concrete sidewalk sections, excavation, and formwork for new concrete sidewalk slabs. The railing work will entail removal, resetting and replacement of railing and posts.

The approach sidewalk segment had been damaged by an Amazon tractor-trailer that attempted to unlawfully cross the 120-year-old weight-restricted narrow-laned bridge during early morning hours of March 3, 2023. The truck became lodged beneath the bridge’s sign gantry on the Pennsylvania approach. The collision twisted the overhead sign structure and damaged its supports down to the anchorages on each side of the bridge’s Pennsylvania abutment. The approach sidewalk and railings extend atop wingwalls off the abutment at the location.

One dividend of the upcoming walkway closure is that it should allow commission maintenance personnel to expedite remaining replacement of the bridge walkway’s worn and weathered wooden planks. Plank replacement work has been taking place intermittently at the bridge since early June. To date, wooden plank replacement has been completed on four of the bridge’s six spans.

The scheduled uninterrupted walkway closure is subject to change due to weather, emergencies, and other factors. The two closest pedestrian river crossings are at the Scudder Falls (I-295) Toll Bridge 2-1/2 miles to the south and the New Hope-Lambertville Toll-Supported Bridge 6.9 miles to the north.