Blue Ball Road Bridge Spanning Laurel Run Opened to Traffic
WEST DECATUR – The Route 2007 (Blue Ball Road) bridge that’s been under construction as part of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s Rapid Bridge Replacement Project has opened to traffic. The bridge spans Laurel Run near the village of West Decatur.
With a new bridge in place, the weight-limit postings of 34-tons for single vehicles and 40 tons for combination vehicles can be removed. Replacement also allows PennDOT to remove it from Clearfield County’s structurally deficient list.
Construction on the new bridge began June 23 and was completed on Aug. 30. The detour that had been in place during the project has been removed. The work was performed by Horizon Construction.
The new crossing is longer and wider than the one it replaced and is designed with a 100-year lifespan.
The bridge replacements are part of the Rapid Bridge Replacement Project, a Public-Private Partnership (P3) between PennDOT and Plenary Walsh Keystone Partners (PWKP) under which PWKP will finance, design, replace and maintain the bridges for 25 years.
As part of PWKP, Walsh/Granite JV will oversee construction. The P3 approach will allow PennDOT to replace the bridges more quickly while achieving significant savings and minimizing impact on motorists.
To see the bridges included in the statewide initiative and to learn more about the Rapid Bridge Replacement Project and P3 in Pennsylvania, visit www.P3forPA.pa.gov. Additional information on the project, the team and how to bid on the project can be found at www.PARapidBridges.com.