Clear Spring Road in N. Annville Twp. closed indefinitely due to bridge defects

The railroad bridge on Clear Spring Road near U.S. Route 422 in North Annville Township officially closed at 9 a.m. Wednesday until further notice. 

North Annville Township Supervisor Adam Wolfe, who also serves as the township’s secretary, said the bridge was closed due to structural defects on the west side of the bridge that were discovered during a biennial inspection on April 28 by Lebanon County’s engineering firm, Wilson Consulting Group. The county offers their engineering firm to do bridge inspections as a service to all local municipalities.

Read More: Taking stock of a bridge over ‘trouted’ waters on the Tulpehocken Creek

North Annville is responsible for maintaining the road surface while Norfolk Southern is in charge of maintaining the bridge’s superstructure and substructure. The bridge, 71 feet long and 31 feet wide, was built in 1937.

A letter obtained by LebTown authored by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to the secretary of the Pennsylvania Utility Commission explains in engineering terms the structural defects and the reasons for closing the roadway.

The PUC is involved with the bridge closing and working to see that repairs are executed by Norfolk Southern because railroads fall under the jurisdiction of that state agency since they are utilities.

The May 6th PennDOT letter from Ahmed Lasloudji, District 8 grade crossing engineer, to PUC secretary Matthew Homsher states: 

“During a recent Routine bridge inspection by Wilson Consulting Group, PC, it was documented that components of the bridge substructure exhibited out-of-tolerance deficiencies resulting in the issuance of a Critical Priority (Priority 0) Maintenance Notification on May 1, 2025. The deficiencies are related to outward rotation and active movement of the Near Abutment (South Abutment) concrete U-wings.”

“The Near Left (NL) U-wing and integral parapet exhibits an outward rotation about a point coincident with a horizontal spall and crack in the U-wing located ±15′ down from the top of the parapet (±10′ below retained fill). Similarly, the Near Right (NR) U-wing and integral parapet exhibits an outward rotation about a point coincident with a horizontal spall and crack in the U-wing located ±16′ down from the top of the parapet (+11′ below retained fill).”

“Due to the nature of the deficiency and the time needed for the bridge owner to implement an adequate repair, the Department requests that the bridge carrying T-376 (Clear Spring Road) over the tracks of the Norfolk Southern Railroad in North Annville Township, Lebanon County, be closed to all traffic until an approved repair is completed.”

Multiple phone calls to the PUC press secretary regarding the closure were not returned as of publication. 

A different PUC spokesman did contact LebTown to say that a docket number for the case will be assigned and shared so that readers can receive notifications from the PUC concerning project progress. However, that docket number had not been provided to LebTown as of publication.

Wolfe said he visited the bridge and saw the defects discovered during the recent inspection. 

“I do see what they are referring to. When I stopped and took a look at the bridge, you can see that the southern wing walls are rotated outwards, and that’s the issue that’s causing the closure of the bridge,” Wolfe said. The wing walls start at the top of the bridge structure, and there are other defects along that section running downward to the base, he added.

Wolfe said he planned to contact Norfolk Southern for more information but hadn’t had time while making arrangements to close the roadway, which had to be completed by Wednesday and was the township’s responsibility. The bridge is located near the Pennsy Suppply quarry.

Wolfe added that Clear Spring Road is the busiest township-maintained road, noting that a 2023 traffic study revealed that it carries between 5,000 and 6,000 vehicles daily.

“What I hope to see happen is that the bridge can be repaired or rehabilitated to the point of being able to be reopened to traffic as quickly as possible,” Wolfe said. “At that point, even if the bridge requires more extensive repairs or replacement to be viable in the long term, a plan can be drawn up in the meantime after the bridge has been reopened to traffic.”

Wolfe said it is important that the road be reopened as soon as possible given its high use and since it links Route 422 and State Route 934. He also advised motorists who drive heavy vehicles to avoid Syner Road since it has a weight restriction of 10 tons.

LebTown was informed that State Sen. Chris Gebhard (R-48) had reached out to railroad officials to discuss necessary repairs. Gebhard staff member Dan Bost told LebTown that he was informed that engineering firm Michael Baker International has been contacted about the bridge replacement, but that’s all he’s learned so far.

Detour signs are posted at the intersections of Clear Spring Road and Route 422 to the south end of the roadway and at Route 934 to the north. On Wednesday during rush hour shortly after 5 p.m., three consecutive vehicles on Route 934 were preparing to turn onto Clear Spring Road but continued south on Route 934 instead. 

At the southern end of the highway, other vehicles traveling south on Clear Spring Road either made a U-turn or turned right onto Syner Road, which is located just before the bridge. Still more vehicles heading north on Clear Spring Road turned around and returned to Route 422, including a white pick-up truck whose wheels howled while turning 180 degrees without apparently slowing down to execute the U-turn.

Clear Spring Road is located between State Route 934 and the sprawling South Annville Township warehouse district, where 3 million square feet of warehouse space has already been built, with another 2.5 million square feet already planned.

A roundabout once earmarked for Route 934 and Clear Spring Road to support the flow of traffic from the DHL logistics park reached a roadblock in September 2024 when the developer withdrew an offer for supplemental construction funds, citing an August decision by North Annville Township supervisors to restrict trailer sizes on Clear Spring Road.