PennDOT said Thursday, April 25, that it is evaluating the situation at the project in Frog’s Hollow replacing the Route 72 bridge over the Swatara Creek to determine if more signage is needed and how additional signage can be most effective.
PennDOT spokesperson Dave Thompson said the project team hand-delivered detour information to the Walmart Distribution Center located south of the bridge at 1625 Heilmandale Road, a facility larger than 17 football fields that employs hundreds, and also set up a message board for trucks coming out of the facility.
A copy of the posted detour was also shared with the facility’s head of logistics, who relayed to the construction team that he has been talking with Walmart’s trucking firms advising them to adhere to the truck detour route.
PennDOT’s evaluation of the situation comes as local residents have noted repeatedly trucks and other vehicles missing or ignoring signs since construction began Monday.
Read More: Route 72 bridge replacement begins, one span over Swatara Creek is already down
Mark Taylor, a Swatara Township resident who lives just south of the bridge by the intersection of Route 72 and New Bunkerhill Road, said the project needs way better signage. Taylor said that he, along with his wife and neighbors, observed numerous trucks and other vehicles proceed north on Route 72 towards the now partially demolished bridge, oblivious to the posted signs.
“We sit in our house and watch the cars drive by,” said Taylor.
Taylor said that some trucks end up taking New Bunkerhill Road to get northward – which is not part of the posted detour – thereby putting additional wear and tear on the 38-foot 1920 bridge on the road. That bridge, made of concrete-encased steel, does not have a known weight limit, according to PennDOT’s statewide bridge conditions database.
Taylor said that Walmart itself is not one of the biggest violators so far as he can tell, but that the company’s third-party logistics partners and other truck carriers, such as car trailers coming up from Manheim, don’t seem to be redirecting their drivers.
LebTown reached out to local Walmart leadership Thursday morning and was directed to corporate headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas, for a statement about how the mega-retailer handles this type of traffic rerouting situation with its transportation partners. A response had not been received as of publication time.
Although Taylor has seen Pennsylvania State Police ticket a few drivers for disregarding the detour, he said there should be more enforcement at the project.
“We didn’t really think that the public would just ignore the signs,” said Taylor.
“Trucks using posted roads or bridges should be reported to the appropriate law enforcement agency,” said Thompson.
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