The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) announced Friday that preliminary work to replace a bridge on Westline Road (Route 3006) in McKean County is scheduled to start Monday. The bridge spans Kinzua Creek, near the village of Westline. The project will upgrade the status of the bridge from “poor” to “good” and provide a new structure that will be in service for decades.
Starting Monday, crews will begin preliminary work to mobilize equipment, perform excavation, and install erosion and sedimentation controls. Work will then begin on construction of a one-lane temporary roadway that will carry traffic around the work zone as the bridge is replaced. PennDOT expects the temporary roadway to be ready for use later this spring and will issue an update on the project before the traffic switch.
Overall work will include removal of the existing bridge, construction of the new bridge, roadway reconstruction, drainage upgrades, guide rail replacement, and miscellaneous items. Clearwater Construction, Inc. of Mercer is the contractor for this $2.6 million job.
The existing bridge is 103 feet long and was built in 1941. It will be replaced with a new, two-span composite beam bridge. Average daily traffic on Westline Road is just under 300 vehicles each day. PennDOT expects the new bridge to be open to traffic in the fall of 2020, with placement of an epoxy overlay and seeding taking place next spring.
PennDOT reminds drivers to use caution in and around work zones, obey posted speed limits, and always buckle up.
