The bridges along the Schuylkill River should be the jewels of the city, yet these great architectural treasures are hidden under 6 inches of soot,grime, pigeon doo, and who knows what else. Can we lean on someone to get these assets cleaned up ? How much cash could it possibly cost to paint or at least clean the bridges, especially from South Street to Market?

I can't recall the last time I saw an attempt by anyone to clean or paint the bridges. They get no attention at all, never.

It's absolutely ridiculous that millions of people on a weekly basis have to look at these bridges as eyesores instead of great achievements.

what's even worse is that the superficial state of those bridges is indicative of the state of maintenance. most bridges in phily are victims of undermaintenance. a buddy of mine is an engineer and his opinon is that the relatively near future there will have to be a lot of money spent to keep those bridges safe. where are our tax dollars going?

Milton's Janitorial Service :roll:

niel, i agree but for the money it's not worth covering the schuykill. the bridges must be attended too though. and the park itself is severely underfunded and perhaps, mismanaged, like every other city agency. the shuykill isn't as prety as the chicago, it's more muddy but as the river fillsup with residences it may get nicer. still, in a city with so many structural and financial problems, we have to be smart with our money and not spend it on htings that are just aesthetically pleasing. as much as i like aesthetics, i'd prefer to walk to work than drive 30 miles.

I don't think it's supposed to shake as much as it does, Blob.

One night I stood right across from the 30th Street Station waiting for the #9 bus. The ground was shaking so violently, I was really concerned that it would collapse.

I'm glad someone else brought this up because I thought it was just me. Does it take a bridge collapse to get things done here? What department or agency is in charge of this?

Well, of course, the South Street bridge is actively deteriorating. I now ride the 40 bus over it 3 times a week (after dropping my daughter off at daycare), and I get nervous every time. I recall 7 years ago when we lived in Rittenhouse Sq. & I walked across the bridge to Penn, every time a large vehicle went by you could feel the whole structure vibrating and shaking. Very unnerving.

You all may recall that a few years ago (around millennium-time, I think) there was this big promotion about a project to "light" the bridges in a fancy artistic way for the holidays. It was going to be a big tourist draw. But when the lights were actually turned on they were pretty ho-hum. Nice, and everything, but nothing to get excited about. Now with the river path coming on line, which takes you right under each one of those bridges, I agree that it's high time some money was sunk into these things. One of the signature images of Chicago is the Chicago river, lined with skyscrapers & crossed by numerous bridges - we should be able to remake this stretch of the Schuylkill in the same fashion. It may not have the tall buildings to give it presence, but there are some interesting views from the river path. If only the bridges were cleaned up. (And the Schuylkill Expressway covered over somehow, but that's another thread.)

Don't hold your breath, though. It won't be happening in the next 4 years, at least.

That's what bridges are supposed to do. Move. Not saying the bridge is sturdy, but every bridge does that.

__________________
Jason
Lynn Swann 06'

"Individualism is absent when other peoples' standards, not reality and reason, are ones primary guide."

This is an old topic, but I think the days of the South Street bridge are numbered. A truck was lodged underneath a year or so ago damaging the bridge and recently, traffic was stopped on the highway when pieces of the sidewalk collapsed below. Fortunately, no cars were passing by at the moment and no pedestrian was walking across! The "merge or die" ramps into the LEFT lane also make the bridge a prime candidate for replacement (I never saw left lane exits and merges until I came to Philly). If they plan to replace the bridge as planned, I hope they wait until they finish the construction/replanning at 38th and Baltimore or else the rush hour traffic getting into and out of Penn will be a disaster.

Well, the bridges are dirty and all, but at least they are structurally sound.
There's a bridge on 476, I'm almost positive it's the one that spans the schuykill river, that's not structually stable. Apparently the supports to the bridge is deteriorating to the point that major maintenance is needed very very soon that it will fail pretty soon. (Found out from my friend who works for a civil engr design company contracted by PennDot)

Let's hope that gets done before any bridges get painted.

The problem with the South St. bridge, actually, is that the number of its days is too great...hmm, that came out awkwardly. By which I mean the bridge should be replaced IMMEDIATELY, in fact should have been years ago, when the project was first announced, but inexplicably it's taken years and we're still no closer actually to seeing it rebuilt. I agree it seems to be falling apart in a way that suggests it shouldn't be up much longer, but it probably will be there 5-8 years from now, still awaiting replacement.

That's alarming to hear about the 476 bridge. Glad I don't drive up that way much.