Pedestrian bridge set to open to public

The trail section has been closed since February

The Schuylkill River Greenways National Heritage Area will open a long awaited new pedestrian bridge Monday.

The Schuylkill River Greenways National Heritage Area will open a long awaited new pedestrian bridge along the Schuylkill River Trail with a celebration on Monday.

The Richard P. Whittaker, M.D. Memorial Bridge grand opening will take place at 11 a.m. over Route 724 in Union Township between N. Main Street and Shed Road.

The Whittaker Bridge is accessible by walking or cycling.

Trail users can reach the bridge by starting from Fork & Ale, 1281 E. Main St., in Union Township or from the Morlatton Village Trailhead,

480 Old Philadelphia Pike in Douglassville.

For the grand opening, Schuylkill River Greenways will have 15 bikes available at Fork & Ale from 10 to 10:40 a.m. for people to borrow. There will be a shuttle to the bridge for those who need it The bikes are on a first-come first-served basis.

The $1.15 million project was first unveiled in 2018. The section of the trail has been closed about seven months as work began in earnest. In July 100-foot beams were installed with cranes.

Schuylkill River Greenways, project funders, project supporter Peggy Whittaker, and elected officials will attend the celebration, the organization said in its announcement of the event.

“This is an incredibly exciting and long-anticipated day for all users of the Schuylkill River Trail and for the entire community. Schuylkill River Greenways is committed to constantly improving the safety and enjoyment of the trail, even while we are simultaneously working feverishly to expand it,” Greenways Executive Director Elaine Paul Schaefer said..

The new 125-foot-long concrete box beam bridge has asphalt approaches and an overhead safety canopy.

The bridge location, often referred to as the Monocacy Crossing, is along the

Thun Section of the trail. It’s a high-traffic area with poor sight distances and cars traveling at a high speed.

Before the bridge, users had to descend a steep slope to cross Route 724 and ascend another slope on the opposite road bank.

Schuylkill River Greenways installed signs at the intersection in 2016.

Those signs were paid for through the Safe Crossings Program.

More than 75 miles of the Schuylkill River Trail is open to the public in southeastern Pennsylvania.

The multi-use path will extend 120 miles when completed from Frackville in Schuylkill County, through Berks, Montgomery, Chester counties and to Philadelphia. To learn more about the Schuylkill River Trail and current projects, visit schuylkillrivertrail.com.