The new Route 72 bridge over Swatara Creek in Frog’s Hollow has opened to traffic.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation announced on Thursday that the Ebenezer Road bridge spanning the creek between Jonestown Road in Union Township and New Bunker Hill Road in Swatara Township has reopened and the detour has been lifted. The bridge was closed in April for replacement.
Justin Zipp, who has been keeping a chronicle of the bridge’s progress on the Jonestown Compass page on Facebook, posted a video of his progress over the newly opened bridge.
“The bridge is now open!!!! Feels nice,” he wrote on the page, along with a note that this is his last post on the subject. He quickly garnered hundreds of comments from visitors to the Facebook page, many thanking him for his efforts over the past several months.
“You did an awesome job of documenting the project and keeping everyone in the loop. Thank you!!!!!” wrote Chris Guerrisi. Joan Weaver later added: “Thank you, Justin! Your posts have been so informative and encouraging in helping us regular folks understand all that goes into bridge building. I’ll miss your almost-daily updates but look forward to your forthcoming book! (I hope!)”
According to a release from PennDOT, temporary traffic control measures have also been lifted. A four-way stop at the intersection of Route 72 and Thompson Avenue has returned to a two-way stop, with stop signs at both approaches on Thompson Avenue and no stop signs at the Route 72 approaches.
Also, a temporary traffic signal at the intersection of Market and Lancaster streets in Jonestown Borough to assist with traffic flow through the intersection has been deactivated. The intersection has been returned to a two-way stop condition with stop signs situated at both Lancaster Street approaches and no stop signs on Market Street.
Susquehanna Valley Construction Corp. of New Cumberland was the contractor on the $4,961,250 project, which included replacing the existing structure, minor roadway reconstruction, guiderail improvements, and drainage improvements.
The project was originally expected to wrap up by Nov. 20, but the timeline was pushed back due to a hold up with utility relocations and a bald eagle nesting restriction.
The new bridge – made of prestressed concrete beams, a concrete deck, and concrete abutments on the stream banks – replaces a previous 1930-era, two-span arch structure that had a center pier in the Swatara Creek and a narrow concrete deck.
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