Luzerne County must reexamine Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge options

Now that the state awarded $10 million toward the Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge, Luzerne County must follow state procedures to advance the project, county Manager Romilda Crocamo told council Monday.

Those steps include seeking an engineering firm to provide three options that consider rehabilitation, replacement and preservation of the county-owned span over the Susquehanna River, she said. The engineering solicitation will be posted through the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s Electronic Construction Management System, she said.

Prior to Crocamo’s hiring last year, the administration had authorized payment of up to $631,900 to Alfred Benesch and Associates to examine the bridge and recommend the “best and most economical option.”

But Crocamo, who announced the state award in April, said she was informed fresh analysis must be completed through state protocols.

Benesch originally recommended largely replacing the existing bridge for an estimated $40.5 million but later advocated construction of a new bridge to the west, which would cost an estimated $63 million with the expense of tearing down the current bridge factored in. A third option to mostly rehabilitate the existing span would cost $47.8 million and was not supported by Benesch or council.

Crocamo said a new analysis could yield additional options not yet considered — namely tearing down the existing span and building a new one on the same footprint.

The option to build a new one to the west largely stemmed from a desire to keep the current bridge operational during construction, but there are caveats to that scenario. Millions of dollars in repairs could be necessary to keep the current bridge open, and the span was downgraded to a 5-ton weight limit in May.

Crocamo’s Monday communication said the $10 million in state funding was awarded through PennDOT’s Transportation Improvement Plan, or TIP, which identifies and programs earmarks for the region’s highest-priority transportation programs.

As the local project sponsor, the county will be responsible for other steps in addition to procuring the engineer and options assessment, with guidance from PennDOT, she said:

• Managing the design process

• Addressing utility right of ways

• Complying with environmental and historical requirements

• Overseeing construction

Crocamo said these are the same steps followed for replacement of the county-owned Firefighters’ Memorial Bridge (Water Street) linking Pittston and West Pittston, but the county must take the lead instead of the state for the bridge connecting Nanticoke and the West Nanticoke section of Plymouth Township.

As part of a bridge bundling, PennDOT had agreed to assume responsibility for the design and construction to replace the Water Street Bridge and nearby state-owned Spc. Dale J. Kridlo Bridge (Fort Jenkins). If all goes as planned, the Pittston/West Pittston area will have two new bridges over the Susquehanna River by mid- to late 2030, officials said during a May public update session.

Crocamo emphasized council has the final say on the Nanticoke/West Nanticoke plan.

“The ultimate decision as to how the county proceeds with this project will be in the hands of council,” Crocamo said in the Monday email.

In addition to the state funding, the county has access to $55 million from casino gambling revenue for the bridge project. There has been some debate over whether past county documents seeking the gambling funding locked the county into a new bridge, as opposed to the largely new option that was originally recommended by Benesch and embraced by some council members.

Crocamo said her Monday update stemmed from a county administration meeting with PennDOT last week to review next steps.