Mill Creek & Valley Forge Bridges

The Pennsylvania Turnpike underwent a six-mile reconstruction and widening project to expand the Turnpike from four to six lanes between milepost 320 and milepost 326.

Benesch provided the design for the replacement of two overhead bridges (EB-735/Mill Road and EB-739/Valley Forge Road) with a unique green element to meet new environmental standards. As a sustainable design feature, a rain garden was incorporated to control complex stormwater management and meet stringent National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System requirements in the Exceptional Value Watershed.

Benesch prepared final traffic control plans to depict the necessary signs, devices, traffic restrictions and phasing to allow the safe, efficient and controlled movement of traffic through and around the construction site. This effort required traffic data collection at eighteen off-site intersections in and around Valley Forge National Park. This was necessary to assess and mitigate the impact of additional traffic along the detour routes.

Benesch developed a detailed staging plan for the demolition of the existing bridge on Mill Road and the staged construction of the new bridge to accommodate the removal and reattachment of a PECO gas main. For the Valley Forge Road Bridge, a special provision was developed to close the Turnpike for a period of four hours while the existing rigid-frame structure was imploded and cleared from the roadway below.

All design plans were completed in accordance with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Design Manual and Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission procedures.