Big Progress on Christian to Crescent Trail Construction

On election day, BCGP was invited by Schuylkill River Development Corporation to join a tour of the Christian to Crescent trail construction site to see how well this project is coming along.

This $45 million cable-stayed bridge spans along the east side of the Schuylkill River and will extend the Schuylkill River Trail from its current dead end in the vicinity of Christian Street to the Gray’s Ferry Crescent.  It is expected to be completed by 2025.  The project is being designed by AECOM and the contractor is PKF-Mark III.  The Streets Department and PennDOT are overseeing the construction.  The City of Philadelphia is the owner and Philadelphia Parks and Recreation and SRDC will maintain the new structure.

The project will have two 139-foot towers that are supported by two large piers, one of which is in the middle of the photo below.

 

The project is being funded by the City of Philadelphia, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, USDOT Federal Highway Administration and the William Penn Foundation.

Once this project is completed, in combination with the Swing Bridge (called the Schuylkill Crossing) that is expected to open in 2024, the Schuylkill River Trail will be “gap-less” from the point where Main meets Kelly Drive all the way to 61st .  This leaves only the Wissahickon Gateway in Manayunk/East Falls as the largest remaining gap in the SRT between Pottstown and Philadelphia.