LOWER MAKEFIELD, PA – A series of major travel changes related to Scudder Falls Bridge Replacement Project are scheduled to go into effect early next week along I-295 westbound (old I-95 south) and the Taylorsville Road interchange (Exit 10, Old Exit 51), the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission announced today. (Click to view detour map)
The change that is expected to affect the most motorists will be a shift of I-295 westbound traffic to the left of the existing highway median shortly after crossing the Scudder Falls Bridge into Pennsylvania from New Jersey. This shift is expected to go into effect – weather permitting – during the early morning hours of Tuesday, Aug. 14. (Note: I-295 west traffic approaches the Scudder Falls Bridge in New Jersey on I-295 north.)
This change will result in a new temporary roadway pattern in which the two shifted I-295 westbound travel lanes and the two existing I-295 eastbound (old I-95 north) travel lanes will run immediately adjacent to each other with a temporary construction barrier between them.
This will allow for creation of a widened 1-1/2 mile construction zone on the northern side of the I-295 approach roadway from the I-295/Taylorsville Road interchange to a point roughly halfway between the Quarry Road overpass and the I-295/Route 332 (Yardley-Newtown Road) interchange (Exit 8, Old Exit 49).
The Pennsylvania Welcome Center along I-295 westbound will remain open with new temporary access lanes, although ingress and egress may be suspended at times during the implementation of the new I-295 travel configuration.
The new widened work zone on the northern side of PA I-295 will be roughly in line with the first span of the Scudder Falls Replacement Bridge now under construction in the river immediately upstream of the current bridge. The new I-295 travel pattern and corresponding adjacent work zone are expected to remain in place into 2019.
Coinciding with the upcoming I-295 westbound traffic shift, a series of travel changes will be implemented at the I-295/Taylorsville Road interchange (Exit 10, Old Exit 51). These changes will be as follows:
- The current I-295 west exit ramp for Taylorsville Road north (New Hope exit, Exit 10B) immediately after crossing the Scudder Falls Bridge from New Jersey will be permanently taken out of service. This traffic will be shifted to a new temporary exit ramp on the other side of Taylorsville Road a short distance west of the current “Yardley Exit” location.
- The current I-295 west exit ramp for Taylorsville Road south (Yardley exit, Exit 10A) also will be permanently taken out of service. In its place, a new temporary ramp will be opened a short distance west. This ramp will exit as a single lane, but then flare out to two lanes to handle vehicles exiting to Taylorsville Road north and south. A recently installed set of traffic lights will control travel movements at that ramp’s intersection with Taylorsville Road. (Note: Vehicles seeking to travel south toward Yardley will be permitted to make right turns on red at the ramp’s intersection with Taylorsville Road.)
- Taylorsville Road will be re-striped to improve the flow of the ramp traffic exiting into the northbound direction for nearby Woodside Road east and west and Taylorsville Road north.
- A new recently installed set of traffic lights also will go into operation along Taylorsville Road south of the I-295 overpass (Yardley side). This new light will regulate traffic along both directions of Taylorsville Road and the ramp for vehicles exiting from I-295 east (old I-95 north) onto Taylorsville Road north.
- The new sets of traffic lights at the I-295/Taylorsville Road interchange ramps will be temporary until the permanent signals are placed into operation later in the project when final ramp configurations get constructed and opened for use. The new temporary traffic lights have been in a blinking “testing mode” since Tuesday, Aug. 7. They are expected to go live during early morning hours of Tuesday, Aug. 14.
The project contractor plans for the I-295 westbound traffic shift, intersection ramp changes, roadway restriping, signage installations and traffic-signal changes to be phased in and completed over the course of a 36-hour-period between 5 a.m. Monday Aug. 13, and 5 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 14. Off-peak single-lane closures will be utilized along the affected I-295 westbound segment to allow for the setup and implementation of the new travel patterns.
The aforementioned work schedule and travel restrictions are subject to change due to weather, emergency and or traffic considerations. Motorists are urged to allow extra time to reach their destinations, and to reduce speeds and exercise caution when travelling through the project work areas.
More information on the Scudder Falls Bridge Replacement Project is available at www.scudderfallsbridge.com.
