Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Barry Schoch joined the Montgomery County Commissioners, State Rep. Mike Vereb, and other dignitaries today to kickoff one of the most important bridge replacement projects in Montgomery County in decades.
The brief ceremony launched the $7.7 million, 20-month demolition and replacement of the Arcola Road Bridge, which connects Lower and Upper Providence Townships over the Perkiomen Creek.
The 290-foot bridge, built in 1869 and rebuilt in 1931, was ordered closed by PennDOT on August 16, 2013 for safety reasons. By the time of its closure, the bridge had become a major commuter route for workers in the pharmaceutical companies and office parks clustered between Collegeville and Phoenixville.
Unrivaled cooperation between PennDOT, area legislators, county and local officials managed to advance the construction schedule ahead significantly.
“This critical project has gotten to this point much sooner than many infrastructure projects because of the immense amount of cooperation between levels of government,” said Josh Shapiro, chair of the Montgomery County Commissioners. He specifically commended State Rep. Mike Vereb along with State Sen. John Rafferty, the county’s Department of Assets and Infrastructure, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the federal Highway Administration and both Lower and Upper Providence Townships.