Bridge collapse closes trail

A bridge over the Schuylkill River Trail west of Spring City has partially collapsed.

It has forced the closure of the popular trail between mile markers 34 and 34.25 according to a sign warning of the closure where the trail crosses Old Schuylkill Road in the Parker Ford section of the township.

The bridge carries the unused Dairy Road over the trail, which is built on a former railroad bed.

Dairy Road is part of the former Pennhurst Asylum property next to the Southeast Veterans Center.

While most of the bridge remains up, a steel side rail has collapsed onto the trail.

The collapse and resulting trail closure was announced on the website of the Schuylkill Greenways National Heritage Area which maintains the trail, but no further information was provided.

Attempts to reach Greenway officials for comment and further information about the structural integrity of the bridge were unsuccessful.

About 10 miles of the Schuylkill River Trail are planned for Chester County, from Phoenixville to Pottstown.

However, the section between Parker Ford and Pottstown has not yet been built and only about six miles from the Cromby power station to Parker Ford opened in 2013.

With the completion of a trail section on the new Route 422 bridge over the river, between Chester and Montgomery counties, the connection to Pottstown is prepared.

Current plans call for the section of trail to be completed by 2020.

When completed, the trail is planned to stretch 100 miles from Philadelphia to the river’s headwaters in Pottsville, Schuylkill County.