PA/NJ I-95 Delaware River Scudder Falls bridge replacement proposed for toll financing

Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission (DRJTBC) officials are proposing to replace the present old, inadequate and untolled I-95 bridge at Scudder Falls near Trenton NJ with a larger, new toll bridge to cost an estimated $310m. A Commission spokesman says toll financing of the new Scudder Falls bridge is the only feasible source of funds and it is fair given tolls on bridges on I-78, I-80, and US1 and on the New Jersey Turnpike.

At 58k vehicles/day Scudder Falls Bridge is the busiest of the 20 bridges the Commission operates over the Delaware River between New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

DRJTC consultants estimate traffic at over 77k veh/day by 2030.

The present 1950s bridge has 2+2 travel lanes. It has become a bottleneck also because of interchanges on either side of the bridge causing the bridge lanes to serve weaving movements due to entries and exits to the interchange ramps.

In a statement issued today Frank G McCartney, DRJTBC chief executive said the decision to move to toll financing of the Scudder Falls bridge was not made lightly:

"But in the absence of available federal and state funding for the project, the Commission believes a toll paid by users of the bridge is the most equitable solution.  Commissioners did not feel it was reasonable or fair to expect users of our other river crossing to shoulder the financial burden of the capital improvements to the Scudder Falls Bridge.”

DRJTBC operates a mix of tolled and untolled bridges, but with the exception of the I-95 bridge the untolled bridges are low traffic volume and often historic bridges, which are supported by the tolls of the heavily trafficked routes.

McCartney continued: "The Commission has an established record of responsible use of toll revenues through the execution of our capital improvement program over the past nine years. 

"Funded solely through toll revenues, the Commission’s capital program has completed rehabilitations or improvements to half of our 20 bridges, improved communications and security on our crossings, and introduced an electronic toll-collection system.

"The Scudder Falls Improvement Project will build on this legacy by providing a new, improved facility that will meet the region’s transportation needs for the foreseeable future.”

Plans for tolling the I-95 bridge provide for all-electronic or cashless toll collection at full highway speeds.

The proposed project area would extend 4.4 miles (7.1km) along I-95 – from the Route 332 interchange in Bucks County PA to the Bear Tavern Road interchange in Mercer County NJ. 

This would be the largest construction project in the Commission’s 75-year history. 

The work would include a complete replacement of the existing four-lane Scudder Falls Bridge over the Delaware River with six lanes of through traffic (three in each direction), two auxiliary northbound lanes for adjacent interchange travel, and one auxiliary lane southbound for similar entry/exit travel for a total of nine traffic lanes.

The project would involve widening of I-95 from the Route 332 exit in Pennsylvania to the bridge by adding an additional lane in each direction into the median of the existing highway.

The I-95/Taylorsville Road Interchange in Lower Makefield Twp PA would be simplified by elimination of the existing eastern southbound off-ramp from I-95. Ot would be combined with the existing western southbound off-ramp.

The Route 29 interchange would be reconstructed with roundabouts in place of traffic signals to keep traffic flowing - termed a folded diamond interchange with two roundabout intersections at the ramps with I-95.

The new bridge could also cater to cyclists and pedestrians and provide breakdown shoulders on the side of each roadway. $7.5 million of noise-abatement walls would be built along the approach roadways to and from the bridge.

Earlier this month the Commission published a 561-page draft Environmental Assessment for for public review and comment. 

see  www.scudderfallsbridge.com

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TOLLROADSnews 2009-12-21