Ramp Closures Start Monday For Scudder Falls Bridge Replacement

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — Beginning Monday, four interchange ramps feeding off of or onto Interstate 295 will close for five weeks, the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission announced. Drivers traveling from Bucks County into New Jersey are advised to build in extra commuting time while closures last.

Detours will be posted to steer affected motorists onto alternative routes for entering or exiting I-295 eastbound in Pennsylvania, or for accessing Route 29 on the bridge’s New Jersey side.

These changes come as part of the next major facet of construction in the Scudder Falls Bridge Replacement project. The new downstream bridge span is expected to open in August, according to the toll bridge commission.

The four ramp closures and detours will enable construction crews to reconstruct the ramps prior to a final configuration permanently aligning I-295 eastbound in Pennsylvania and I-295 southbound in New Jersey. When completed, the newly aligned ramps will feed traffic to and from the second Scudder Falls Bridge span.

Work during the five-week closure will include – but not be limited to – excavation, installation of drainage facilities and guide rails, curbing, paving and striping.

Commuters who access I-295 eastbound in Bucks County, PA to travel across the Scudder Falls Toll Bridge to job locations in neighboring Mercer County, NJ are advised to plan ahead and allow extra time to reach their destinations while the ramp closures are in effect. Pennsylvania-bound drivers should be relatively unaffected.

The work on the various interchange ramps is weather sensitive and the schedule could be changed if necessary in the weeks ahead.

At the I-295/Taylorsville Road interchange (New Hope-Yardley, Exit 10) in Pennsylvania, three ramps will close:

• The I-295 EB off-ramp to Taylorsville Road.
• The Taylorsville Road southbound entry ramp to I-295 EB/SB immediately before the old Scudder Falls Bridge.
• The Taylorsville Road northbound entry ramp to I-295 EB/SB immediately before the old Scudder Falls Bridge.

Affected motorists from these ramp closures will be detoured to the Yardley-Newtown/Route 332 interchange (Exit 8) either along I-295 WB from the Taylorsville Road interchange or via Taylorsville Road and Route 332/West Afton Avenue/Yardley-Newtown Road.

At the I-295/Route 29 interchange (Exit 76) in New Jersey, one ramp will close:

• The off-ramp to Route 29 immediately after crossing the Scudder Falls (I-295) Bridge from Pennsylvania into New Jersey.

Affected motorists from this ramp closure will be directed to the Scotch Road interchange (Exit ramp 73-A) where they can use the loop ramps to cross over I-295 and make a U-turn onto I-295 NB so they can access the Route 29 exit ramp immediately before the Scudder Falls Toll Bridge (last exit in New Jersey).

These detours are scheduled to begin Monday and continue until Aug. 16. The downstream span of the bridge is also expected to be completed by this date, at which point it would become available for public use and the replacement project would shift into its third — and final — stage.

Work from this third stage is expected to be completed in May of 2022. Crews will work in the fall and winter of 2021 on final roadway construction within the median, final pavement surfacing, and lane striping. All of this more substantive work will be finalized in December of this year.

When fully completed, the bridge’s upstream span will carry only Pennsylvania-bound I-295 traffic, with three through lanes and one auxiliary lane. The downstream span will carry only New Jersey-bound I-295 traffic, with three through lanes and two auxiliary lanes.

Click here to read more about the Scudder Falls Bridge Replacement project.