Union County completes bridge bundle project, replacing six aging spans

Six aging Union County bridges have been replaced across Hartley, Lewis, West Buffalo and White Deer townships and New Berlin Borough, giving the county a finished project it says will make daily travel less fragile on some of its smaller local roads. The bundle covered Palman Road, Kaiser Run Road, Walnut Street, Centennial Road, Johnstown Road and Creek Road, and county officials said the goal was to handle the work as one contract instead of six separate jobs so the job would move faster and cost less.

That approach mattered because the bridges were in poor condition and served the kinds of routes that keep a rural county connected. In Union County, a small bridge can mean a school bus has to detour, a farmer loses time moving equipment, or an ambulance has to take a longer path to reach a call. By replacing all six spans together, the county said it improved efficiency and strengthened the grant application that helped pay for the work.

The financing reflects how much coordination it took. The project received about $2.1 million from PennDOT, $475,000 from the Department of Community and Economic Development, $500,000 from Union County and nearly $400,000 from the participating municipalities. County officials said the bridge bundle was fully funded after nearly $1.4 million came through the state Multimodal Transportation Fund in 2024 and another $800,000 was awarded in 2023. Taken together, the project cost roughly $3.5 million and drew money from county, state and local governments to get the bridges done.

PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll visited the Walnut Street bridge in New Berlin on Oct. 29, 2024, to highlight the county’s bundling strategy, which also involved five local partners working alongside the county. Union County Planning and Economic Development was credited with leading the effort, and commissioners publicly recognized Shawn McLaughlin for bringing the idea forward. Commissioner Preston Boop said the work would improve public safety, modernize transportation and help rural communities remain economically competitive, while state Rep. Jamie Flick said the funding secured the additional dollars needed to finish construction.

The county’s decision to group the bridges together also fit the logic PennDOT uses for its Multimodal Transportation Fund, which weighs safety benefits, regional economic conditions, technical and financial feasibility, job creation, energy efficiency and operational sustainability. For Union County, the result is more than a bridge project. It is a sign that the county is trying to protect everyday travel on the roads residents use for work, school, farm traffic and emergency response.