Luzerne County Council can schedule presentations from the top three engineering firms interested in work on the closed West Nanticoke/Nanticoke Bridge after PennDOT approves a county administrative decision to eliminate two firms from consideration, County Manager Romilda Crocamo said Wednesday in a report updating the process.
A Luzerne County administration committee reviewed statements of interest submitted by five engineering firms on Monday morning, Crocamo said.
“Information from the committee reviews will be provided to PennDOT Central Office for their approval. Upon PennDOT approval, the firm names will be made public,” Crocamo said Wednesday in an email to county council members.
Two weeks ago, Crocamo decided to close the bridge over the Susquehanna River shortly after engineers conducting a scheduled routine bridge inspection determined advanced deterioration and section loss of primary, load-carrying components were critical deficiencies.
The county-owned bridge, built in 1914, links Nanticoke City to the West Nanticoke section of Plymouth Twp. The next-closest bridge over the river is the Route 29 bridge connecting Hanover Twp. and Plymouth Twp.
The vehicular weight limit on the bridge was reduced to 5 tons last May. That decision allowed cars and most passenger vehicles to cross the bridge, but emergency vehicles such as fire trucks could not.
Last August, the county put the bridge project into the PennDOT’s Engineering and Construction Management System, known as ECMS, to receive $10 million in federal project funding through the state Transportation Improvement Program. The county also has access to $55 million from an infrastructure loan funded by state gaming revenue.
Two weeks ago, the five engineering firms submitted statements of interest to get the job determining how to repair, reconstruct or replace the bridge. All five engineering firms interested are “excellent,” Director of Project Management Nick Vough said at the last council meeting on March 25.
“I don’t think we can go wrong with…
