desert flyer wrote:
Mike, Great Pictures. It looks like a new route as there is no old bridge visible. Is it an Interstate bypass route?
Dick Welsh
Dick, this is one of the largest construction projects in the USA right now...
It is a brand - new mile-long bridge will span over the West Branch of the Susquehanna River, to connect U.S. Route 15 south of Winfield to PA Route 147 south of Montandon as part of CSVT's Northern Section. In the Southern Section, the bridge will connect U.S. 11/15 north of Selinsgrove to U.S. Route 15 south of Winfield.
After much study, this will open-up trade and transportation to this area of PA and connect east to west, north to south better in a known "chokepoint" of the state. I think it started in 2017 and should be open by 2024. Estimated at $670,000,000, it is likely to now surpass $1,000,000,000.00 (1 Billion). I was incorrect in citing only $100,000,000 earlier!
Watching ONE MILE of BRIDGE go up 50 feet at a time is very interesting....we go up there about once a month to watch the progress...the height from the water to the bridge is over 160 feet....so I am sure it will attract bungee-jumpers and other dare-devils. Already pilots are (jokingly) talking about flying UNDER it. I repeat, JOKINGLY.
At the foot of it, they build islands for the spans...as the spans went in, the islands moved in advance....incredible engineering!
No matter how old we get, there is still something fascinating about observing something so remarkable being constructed - it re-affirms your faith in the nation and our human abilities! This bridge will serve us well into the 22nd Century!
Mike N714AJ
