SCUDDER FALLS – The Scudder Falls (I-295) Toll Bridge’s 0.86-mile-long Shared-Use Path is scheduled to be closed to pedestrians and bicyclists four days a week for more than two months starting on or about March 16, the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission announced today.
The weekly closures will enable a Commission contractor to remove and replace the uneven puddle-prone polyester polymer concrete (PPC) surface along the bridge’s elevated walkway surface.
The roughly 1-inch-thick layer of high-density PPC helps to protect the underlaying concrete surface from weather and erosion. The material is frequently applied to bridge roadway surfaces, but rarely used on walkways.
To allow the work to proceed, the walkway facility’s entry points will be blocked at the Delaware & Raritan Canal’s rail trail on the New Jersey side and the Delaware Canal towpath on the Pennsylvania side. Closure periods will begin early on Monday mornings and continue uninterrupted until the ensuing Friday morning.
If work goes according to plan and weather conditions are favorable, the goal is to complete the walkway resurfacing and end the weekly walkway closures by the Memorial Day weekend.
Pedestrians and bicyclists are urged to plan ahead for the closure periods. The closest river crossing points for pedestrians are the Calhoun Street Toll-Supported Bridge 4.8 miles to the south and the Washington Crossing Toll-Supported Bridge 2.5 miles to the north.
(Note: The walkways at these alternate river crossing points are significantly narrower than the 10-foot-wide Scudder Falls Shared-Use Path. Bicyclists must dismount and walk their bikes across the walkways at these other two bridges.)
The upcoming work on the Scudder Falls Toll Bridge Shared-Use Path is part of a broader project that also has included application of a sealing compound to the bridge’s highway lanes and shoulders. The sealing further protects the roadway surfaces from corrosive elements like salt, moisture, and petroleum distillates.
