Luzerne County road and bridge projects discussed

Although many infrastructure plans are still uncertain, Luzerne County Engineer Lawrence Plesh recently gave county council a list of road and bridge projects that are set for completion in 2023 and 2024.

Plesh said this roster is firm because they are all covered by grants or other outside funding and not the county’s annual operating budget.

“They are already in progress, either in design or ready to be bid,” Plesh said.

The list:

• Roads: Sweet Valley Road, Ross Township; Broadway Road, Ross/Union townships; West County Road, Sugarloaf/Black Creek townships; and Hillside Road, Kingston/Jackson townships.

• Bridges: Heslop Road, Rice Township; Hillside Road and Harris Hill Road, Kingston Township; Sleepy Hollow Road, Butler Township; Stout Road, Nescopeck Township; and five bridges in a bundling package in Union Township.

The Heslop Road bridge made headlines in September 2021 because it was severely damaged in heavy rain, creating an urgent concern because it is the only access route to dozens of residences. Heslop Road dead-ends and has no alternate access.

The county had obtained an emergency permit through the state to complete temporary repairs. A Rice Township official had said a long-time beaver dam on the pond side of the Heslop Road Bridge blew out during Hurricane Ida, causing increased water pressure and erosion.

For the permanent fix, Plesh said the county plans to replace an existing damaged masonry arch culvert with a pre-fabricated concrete one. Completion of the project is expected by the end of 2023.

Replacement of the Hillside Road Bridge in Kingston Township will be funded by the state’s award of a $2 million match for the county’s implementation of a $5 vehicle registration fee that council halted the end of 2021, Plesh has said.

Sweet Valley Road can be tackled because council had voted in June to use $1.86 million of the county’s federal American Rescue Plan funding for that project.

Only a small portion of the American Rescue funding was available for road paving and other more discretionary purposes that fall outside eligible program uses, officials have said.

American Rescue

The county Road and Bridge department has a pending request for $9.8 million of county American Rescue funds to primarily address stormwater issues along many county roads, which is one of the allowable uses under the federal program, Plesh said.

Council is still reviewing this submission along with other American Rescue funding requests from county departments and outside entities.

Because stormwater projects are an allowable use for the funds, Plesh said this is an opportunity to widen shoulders and regrade and set back swales that collect water along many county-owned roads.

“Without shoulders, it’s keeping a lot of water on many roads,” Plesh said. “We will do as many roads as possible.”

He expects the American Rescue funding also would cover associated paving of the sections requiring stormwater enhancements, which are deteriorated stretches due to water pooling or repeatedly flowing across. Plesh said he does not believe the funding can cover paving in connected roadway sections that do not have stormwater issues.

Casino funding

The county also will have access to up to $55 million for county-owned infrastructure covered by casino funding, but the work that will be completed is still unclear.

Based on authorizing state legislation, the county redevelopment authority borrowed to create the infrastructure fund and will repay the loan with $3 million provided annually for 25 years from the casino-gambling Local Share Account (LSA). The authority board learned last week that the first $3 million installment has arrived.

Under the current plan, the county would first address the deteriorated Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge over the Susquehanna River and then other county roads if funds are remaining.

More money will be available for other projects if the county secures grant funding for the bridge. Plesh said he has submitted an application to fund the Nanticoke/West Nanticoke Bridge through a new Bridge Investment Program grant administered by the Federal Highway Administration, which would require a county match. He is hoping to learn in January or February whether the application has been successful.

“Cross your fingers,” Plesh told council in his late November budget presentation.

Plesh said the county’s first use of the casino funding will be for the preliminary bridge design, which will include a survey, right-of-way acquisition, initiation of permits and an evaluation to determine if any portions of the existing bridge can be salvaged to reduce the scope of work.

He is estimating a full replacement would cost at least $40 million.

If the county ends up obtaining the federal grant, the money spent on the preliminary design could apply to the required 20% local match, he said.

At minimum, without the grant, Plesh is optimistic the casino funding will cover deteriorated sections of the following roadways, with the estimated cost in parentheses: Main Road in Hunlock and Ross townships, $1 million; Lower Demunds Road and Upper Demunds Road in Dallas and Franklin townships, $650,000; Ransom Road in Dallas and Franklin townships, $500,000; Church Road in Wright Township, $500,000; Oak Hill Road in Wright Township, $500,000; Crestwood Drive in Wright Township, $250,000; Old Airport Road in Butler Township, $250,000; and Hanover Street in Hanover Township, $250,000.

Council members have not taken any action seeking to alter plans for how the casino-funded money will be used.

Waiting list

While there are more roads in need of attention, Plesh said he does not have any other immediate funding streams to add more to the list.

The county has approximately 120 miles of roads and 300 bridges scattered within its boundaries, many inherited from municipalities during the Great Depression.

Decisions on which to address first are based on traffic volume, the level of truck and heavy equipment traffic, infrastructure age and material composition and the number of residents and businesses reliant on the infrastructure, he said.

His department also has been participating in a “Roadbotics” software scan of roadways to provide more precise data on the condition of roadways for prioritization of work.

“A lot of our older roads don’t have a good base, which is partly the problem why they are cracking and get buckles,” Plesh told council in his budget presentation. “We’re pretty desperate out there. We have a lot of roads that are in need of some work.”