UPDATE: PennDOT delays Skinner Falls Bridge removal to mid-March

The Skinner Falls Bridge stands another day, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT).

PennDOT announced today that it will delay the removal of the 124-year-old historic bridge to mid-March due to weather conditions. Preparations for removal, including building a causeway beside the bridge, were set to begin on Monday, Feb. 24. Construction crews were scheduled to begin tearing down the bridge today, Feb. 26.

Transportation officials closed down the bridge in October 2019 due to structural issues, but recent inspections show that the bridge is in “critical condition” and that the New York portion of the bridge is “actively moving.”

Skinners Falls connects Wayne County, Pa. and Sullivan County, N.Y. over the Delaware River. It was built in 1901 as an alternative to a locally-run ferry system. Community members from Milanville, Pa., and Skinners Falls, N.Y have fought for the bridge’s preservation, as it is one of the nation’s last Baltimore truss bridges and is listed twice on the National Register of Historic Places.

PennDOT’s presser states “it is necessary to remove the bridge as quickly as possible to prevent an uncontrolled collapse.”

Gov. Josh Shapiro issued an emergency order to remove the bridge on Dec. 16 after receiving eyewitness accounts of pieces of the bridge falling into the water from transportation officials.

In a meeting on Dec. 17, Richard Roman, District Executive for PennDOT’s Northeast Region, said the bridge “must be removed by the end of the season before springtime accelerates cold weather freeze and thaw cycles.” 

Removal, which is now slated to begin in mid-March, is not expected to change PennDOT’s estimated completion date of May 2025.

— Isabela Weiss