County consultant now recommending construction of new Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge

Luzerne County’s outside consultant is now recommending construction of a new Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge over the Susquehanna River instead of partially replacing the existing one, according to a presentation on Tuesday’s council work session agenda.

What changed?

Dominic Yannuzzi, of consultant Alfred Benesch and Associates, said additional weight was put on the community impact of a 2.6-year closure of the existing bridge during the partial replacement project. In comparison, the current span could remain open to traffic during construction of a new bridge.

The cost difference also was addressed by removing more than $9.5 million that originally had been factored into the new bridge construction estimate to cover the costs of tearing down the existing bridge, Yannuzzi said.

Removing the current bridge demolition from the new bridge construction costs is allowable because they are technically individual projects, Yannuzzi said. The county can seek outside funding assistance for the demolition and remove the span on its own timeline after the new one opens, he said.

Originally estimated at $64 million, a full replacement is now down to $53.6 million with demolition removed from the equation, according to the presentation.

Partial replacement construction is still cheaper — $40.5 million, it says.

However, that estimate rises to $55.8 million on the presentation chart when a $15.3 million “detour user cost” is added to reflect the impact of the 2.6-year bridge closure on the community, Yannuzzi said.

He emphasized detour user costs are not a county expense but are instead absorbed by those required to take an alternate route.

Technically called “road users liquidated damages,” the community cost is documented in a section of the full 389-page Benesch report attached to Tuesday’s agenda.

The cost for the traveling public associated with the additional distance traveled and time lost equates to approximately $4.02 for each vehicle using the detour. This price includes costs for both user’s time and vehicle mileage, it says.

With approximately 4,000 vehicles impacted per day, the liquidated damages total $16,000 daily, or more than $15 million collectively over 2.6 years of the bridge closure, Yannuzzi said.

By treating demolition of the current bridge as a separate project, the county would have sufficient funds to construct a new bridge under this updated scenario.

The county has access to $55 million from casino gambling revenue.

Benesch was hired by the county to study the bridge and determine the “best and most economical option” for the county-owned span, which was downgraded to a 15-ton weight limit in 2020 due to issues found in an inspection.

Yannuzzi said it’s not unusual for recommendations to change in the preliminary planning process as more information and public input is collected.

County council must eventually decide how to proceed, and the partial replacement option originally recommended by Benesch is not off the table. It would replace the three truss spans with four new steel bridge spans on new piers, replace the beams and deck on the 21 approaching spans and repair existing piers and abutments, the company said.

With partial replacement, the bridge also would be widened to 32 feet and equipped with an added right turning lane onto Route 11. These additions could accommodate potential future industrial development in the area of the bridge, Benesch representatives have said. The top of piers would be widened to support extra beam lines needed for the wider deck.

In comparison, the total replacement option would yield a completely new bridge in an alignment west of the existing one, Benesch said. As with partial rehabilitation, the new bridge would be wider and address future development, it said. New construction avoids “unknowns of rehabilitation” and has the lowest long-term maintenance commitment, it said.

Tuesday’s work session follows a 6 p.m. voting meeting at the county courthouse on River Street in Wilkes-Barre, with instructions for the remote attendance option posted under council’s online meetings link at luzernecounty.org.

Although it did not impact the presented county costs for either option, Benesch also considered a “community impacts” analysis that had been completed by the Lower South Valley Council of Governments in its revised recommendation.

Scranton-based Hailstone Economic completed the report detailing the negative effects of a bridge closure.

More than 10,100 residents and 291 businesses are within a five-minute drive of the bridge, the Hailstone report said, including 48 retail establishments, 27 food and beverage places, 20 healthcare and social assistance providers and 62 service businesses.