New bridge to open in November
Butler residents might finally get a $23.1 million present from the state just in time for Christmas.
Construction on the former Main Street bridge, now called the Gen. Richard Butler Bridge, is on schedule to be done by Nov. 17.
Gary Madey, the state Department of Transportation project manager, said the bridge is 80 percent finished. Construction began after the groundbreaking in June 2004.
The bridge is being built in two sections, separated by a barrier. Traffic in both directions began using the northbound side when it was finished Oct. 29.
When the southbound section is finished in the fall, the bridge will expand to four lanes, with two lanes each way. That will double the width from the old two-lane viaduct. There will also be a sidewalk on the east side.
The Joseph B. Fay Co. of Pittsburgh was awarded the contract by PennDOT, with the lowest of the nine bids at $23.1 million.
The old bridge was demolished in July. It had been deemed functionally obsolete and structurally deficient, and had received a federal sufficiency rating of 17.3 out of 100.
Shawn Houck, spokesman for PennDOT, said the new bridge is a state-of-the-art, aesthetically pleasing structure.
"It's an engineering marvel with the curved look and the beams," said Houck.
The 1,232-feet bridge is supported by 14 massive concrete piers rising 80 feet from the Connoquenessing Creek and two sets of railroad tracks below.
There are 70 huge steel beams intersecting the concrete piers.
During the construction in June, PennDOT project manager Larry Traister said each of the pier's footers reach 20 to 25 feet underground. Steel I-beams are then driven through the footers another 15 to 30 feet into the rock layer.
The new bridge is expected to last 100 years, and the deck about 30, according to PennDOT.
Construction halted in early December on the southbound lanes of the new bridge and resumed several weeks ago as weather permitted, said Houck.Houck said when those lanes are finished, the only remaining task is to modify the construction area to the traffic patterns. He said this includes pavement markings and blending the transitions in the separate lanes.The bridge carries about 22,000 vehicles daily, according to PennDOT.Because of the different location of the new bridge, the old viaduct stayed open until it was time to connect the new bridge to South Main Street at the end of July.Traffic was then interrupted for about four months when the old bridge was demolished.It was re-routed over the Pickelgate Bridge to Hansen Avenue, New Castle Street, Cunningham Street and on to Main Street.
John Stokes, the Butler Township zoning officer, said township officials at first were worried with the thought of traffic gridlock on Hansen Avenue.To make sure that didn't happen, Stokes said PennDOT adjusted the timing on the traffic light at the end of the Pickelgate Bridge to the light at Hansen Avenue to match the new traffic flow."Our concern was the AK Steel trucks coming onto Hansen Avenue, but things went better than expected," said Stokes.But even before the project could begin, right of way issues had to be settled with properties in the eminent domain zone.The former battery shop on the south end and west side of the viaduct; the Minute Car Wash on Corry Street; Dr. Joseph Gribik's office on South Main Street; the former American Legion Post 117 building at 413 S. Main St.; and about 3,200 square feet of the Butler County Ford parking lot at Main and Wayne streets had to be relocated.The old 833-foot viaduct was built in 1917 and renovated in 1950.The new bridge is the fifth across the Connoquenessing Creek since Butler was founded 200 years ago, according to PennDOT.Going south out of the city, the new bridge will curve to the southwest, tying into Route 8 just south of Roosevelt Boulevard. Traffic signals will be installed at its intersection with Roosevelt, Thomas Avenue and Pittsburgh Road.
