With the extensive $234 million rehabilitation project planned for the historic Veterans Memorial Bridge, some have asked: Why not build a new one?
The state Department of Transportation says it’s too expensive.
The cost to build a new bridge over the Susquehanna River between York and Lancaster counties would likely be more than $340 million, spokesman Dave Thompson said.
“Building a new bridge from scratch would move this project back to the very early stages of design,” he said.
The Route 462 bridge, also known as the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge, will close to traffic for about three years during an anticipated five-year project to rehabilitate the structure. Construction is expected to begin in 2027.
PennDOT had been planning a rehabilitation project for the 94-year-old bridge when a routine inspection last summer uncovered deterioration and “a significant change” in its condition. The structure now has a weight limit of 10 tons except for emergency vehicles that need to cross it.
The finding prompted interim repairs and delayed the rehabilitation project. The scope of the work to fix the bridge has significantly increased, PennDOT said.
Why building a new bridge over the Susquehanna River isn’t viable
A new bridge would have to be built off-alignment, which would require costly alterations to the connecting streets in Wrightsville and Columbia and likely acquiring additional property for it, Thompson said.
One person on social media suggested that the historic span be turned into a pedestrian and bike walkway between the parks on both sides of the river.
PennDOT says it would not take ownership of two bridges. The Veterans Memorial Bridge would become the responsibility of one of the municipalities.
In addition, significant improvements to the historic bridge would be needed for even bicycle and pedestrian use, Thompson said. That alone is estimated at $60 million to $100 million.
Rehabilitating the existing structure “does meet the project purpose and need of improving connectivity and functional spaces for all three traffic modes (vehicles, bikes and pedestrians) and preserving the structural integrity and historic nature of the bridge,” Thompson said.
That’s why the rehabilitation project is the most viable, cost-effective solution, Thompson said.
Historic bridge opened to traffic during the Great Depression
Veterans Memorial Bridge opened to traffic in 1930 to carry the old Lincoln Highway across the river, according to local historian Jim McClure. It was the fifth of six bridges built across the waterway.
The concrete arch bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
A decade ago, new cast iron lanterns were installed on the bridge piers to have it return to its 1930s look.
The Wright’s Ferry Bridge, which carries Route 30 over the river, opened in 1972, McClure wrote in his newest edition of “Never to be Forgotten.”
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Building new bridge between Columbia and Wrightsville too costly
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