Stroudsburg woman frustrated over bridge construction

STROUDSBURG, MONROE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Plans have been underway to rebuild a bridge in Stroudsburg after being closed for nearly four years.

Joan Fitzgerald, a concerned resident said, “It’s been like this for a long time. Too long.”

Fitzgerald points out that the yard of her Stroudsburg home has been turned into a construction site, as repairs continue on the prolonged Glenbrook Road Bridge.

The section of her property along McMichael Creek was cleared of privacy trees two years ago so crews could bring in heavy machinery.

“I want answers at this point,” said Fitzgerald. Answers that she says she’s been asking for after officials told her the project would be completed last year.

The bridge has been closed since sustaining damage in August 2020 by tropical storm Isaias. Road closure signs have been in place since.

The detour for drivers to get from one side of the bridge to the other side on Glenbrook Road takes around 16 minutes. Fitzgerald says time is her number one frustration, but not those extra minutes in the car.

“It’s been a long time, it’s a dirty project, it’s a loud project when they’re here, and you know we live here, we picked this spot on purpose so it could be a nice place to live and we just have to look at all of this,” said Fitzgerald.

These concerns have brought attention to local leaders, such as Senator Rosemary Brown.

Senator Rosemary Brown, Republican of the 40th Senate District says, “What most people get frustrated with is, hey we know we have to do work, we want the work done, but when is long enough, long enough? This project definitely has taken too long, but there have been some obstacles throughout the process.”

Roy Young, District Press Officer of PennDOT told 28/22 News that construction crews haven’t been at the site due to the contractor actively designing the bridge and cofferdam, which is an enclosure that diverts water away during repairs.

“They’re designing it as they’re building it, so portions of it were being designed as other portions were already designed moving forward and being constructed, and there were some restrictions on when work could be done in the stream due to environmental concerns,” Young said.

PennDOT officials told 28/22 News that when it comes to bridging replacement projects, there are a lot of moving parts as they are built to last up to 100 years.

Young says construction crews will be back at the site within the next two to three weeks and they aim to have the new bridge completed by the end of this year.

PennDOT officials say creating a bridge plan quickly is no easy feat, as it can take up to 10 years to build safely.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PAhomepage.com.