Published: August 21, 2008 10:30 pm      

PennDOT says Napoleon Street span will be replaced

When state Transportation Secretary Allen Biehler visited Johnstown last year, he cited the Napoleon Street bridge as a prime example of aging, deteriorated spans statewide.

The trouble, Biehler said at the time, was there was not enough cash to fix it.

That apparently has changed.

PennDOT officials now say they are planning to completely replace the bridge. And though the project still is a few years away, they say there is funding available.

“We just started the preliminary engineering,” said Alice Hammond, a project manager for Hollidaysburg-based PennDOT District 9.

The job is scheduled to start in spring of 2012, but officials and planners met in Johnstown last week to discuss the bridge.

The 230-foot span, which carries Route 403 over the Stonycreek River, was constructed in 1924. It also is known as Edward A. Silk Memorial Bridge.

A repair job is not feasible, and construction of an entirely new bridge is necessary, Hammond said.

“We’re replacing it because it’s deficient,” she said.

While officials will evaluate their options, Hammond said a detour seems likely during the project. That is no small thing for a bridge used by nearly 11,000 vehicles daily.

PennDOT usually chooses outlying routes for a detour. But City Manager Curt Davis said he expects downtown traffic to increase because many local drivers use the bridge as a shortcut.

He also, during a meeting with PennDOT, pointed out that many pedestrians use the bridge. That is especially true during evening events at Cambria County War Memorial Arena.

Pasquerilla Conference Center also sits between the Napoleon Street bridge and Route 56.

During construction, “it would be crucial that they would at all times maintain a walkway,” Davis said.

Hammond said a public meeting on the project will be held as officials develop their plans.

“We’re going to work closely with the city and everyone involved as we go through the process,” she said.