Brief traffic delays can be anticipated on 15th Street in the City of Allentown during the week of June 10 to allow for delivery of support beams for the 15th Street Bridge and Ward Street Bridge reconstruction project.

Two convoys a day of several hundred feet in length will be making the trip from US Route 22 southward along 15th Street to the construction site off Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive from Monday, June 10 through Thursday, June 13.

The first beams are scheduled to arrive in the city at approximately 10am to begin the 20-to-30 minute long trek to MLK Jr. Drive. All streets crossing 15th Street will be temporarily closed by the Allentown Police Department in rolling fashion. The second convoy of each day will follow approximately two hours later. Parking will be banned on the west side of 15th Street along the entire route from 9am to 5pm each day.

Temporary traffic delays of up to 15 to 30 minutes or so will also occur on MLK Jr. Drive while the beams are maneuvered onto the site of the Allentown Recycling Center. The Allentown Recycling Center will be closed to the public during the week of June 10. More information about the temporary closure of the center will be announced in the coming days.

Any unexpected delay in the delivery could extend the work to Friday, June 14.

Each of the support beams is 160 feet long. A total of 14 beams will be delivered to the project site over the four days by Northeast Prestressed Products, LLC and Harris Trucking Company. The convoys will be escorted through the city by the Allentown Police Department and Pennsylvania State Police.

J.D. Eckman, Inc. of Atglen, Pa. is the general contractor for the $8.4 million bridge replacement project. Funding for the project is 80% Federal, 15% State and 5% City.

The bridge replacement project began with preparation for demolition in August 2012. It is targeted for completion by the end of this year. 
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