Bridge shutdown in Ridley Park threatening local businesses, EMS response times
RIDLEY PARK, Pa. (CBS) -- A bridge shutdown is threatening businesses in one prominent Philadelphia suburb. It abruptly closed in Delaware County. The bridge is in the center of Ridley Park and leads to its normally bustling business district.
The bridge has been in existence since 1904 and was rebuilt in 1952. And now it's time once again to address matters. In March, PennDOT downgraded the weight of traffic that could cross -- it was taken to 3 tons -- and then one day in July it was determined the bridge was no longer safe for vehicles or even pedestrians.
Thoughts and prayers for a bridge? It seems the closure of the Sellers Avenue span in Ridley Park has ruffled feathers.
Get well soon bridge?
"They shut her down, no notice," said Kerrie Pittman. "No notice at all."
Traffic was halted some time in July.
"July 20, 2 p.m," Ridley Park Borough Council President Dane Collins said. "They literally showed up and we were actually getting calls from residents that were in the neighborhood to the borough manager up here in this building that the bridge was going to be closed."
The bridge carries some 3,000 vehicles every day across the Northeast Corridor.
PennDOT says engineers had such low confidence in its safety that it was immediately closed.
No cars. No pedestrians.
Collins said the sudden and anticipated lengthy closure is frustrating.
"It's really been unfortunate because it's hampering our business and then if you look across there, is the firehouse," Collins said. "That affects our firefighters and our EMS and our police's ability to get in and out of the different neighborhoods within the borough effectively. That bridge is used a lot for that."
The businesses along Sellers Avenue are weathering the closure. Many report a dip in earnings.
"A lot of people haven't been coming because of it," Lux and Roses Beauty Salon worker Kelly Cook said.
"It's been all backed up, like the traffic. People have been waiting for a while," Lux and Roses Beauty Salon worker Brae Mecough said.
Already tight profit margins because of inflation and the pandemic are shaved and cut down even more.
"Finally getting back to business. We were really happy and now, we have another setback that's going to be years on end," Cook said. "They don't know when it's going to open back up."
"We're just looking for any help that we can from PennDOT or Amtrak to speed this process across because it is affecting our EMS personnel and it's affecting small businesses in our downtown," Collins said.
January 2023, the bridge will open in bits. PennDOT says the anticipated completion date is possibly the end of summer 2025.
