Winfield Township to repair bridge damaged in crash
WINFIELD TWP — The township board of supervisors voted unanimously Thursday night to commence repairs to the stone bridge on Cornplanter Road, which was damaged severely in a vehicle crash earlier this year.
The exact date of the crash is unknown, but it is believed to have occurred in early January. According to a report from Pennsylvania State Police, the driver of a dark-colored work van — either a GMC Savana or Chevrolet Express — lost control and struck a guide rail.
“They hit that smack, and cracked off 8 to 10 inches of concrete,” said township supervisor Matthew Klabnik. “We basically declared an emergency because it was unsafe.”
He said the bridge has been reduced to a single lane and state police are investigating.
According to Klabnik, the repairs are being fast-tracked as an emergency project so the township can bypass Pennsylvania’s usual process of bidding out construction projects.
“This allows us to do the work without going through the whole rigmarole of putting it out to bid,” Klabnik said.
The bridge in question is a short span that takes motorists over Cornplanter Run. According to Klabnik, the township recently consulted engineering firm Herbert, Rowland & Grubic about whether the bridge needed to be replaced quickly.
“We had HRG look at that bridge last year, and it was estimated between $300,000 and $500,000 to replace the bridge,” Klabnik said. “After they looked at it, we don’t really think there’s any need to replace the bridge.”
Klabnik said the county also is advising the township on the process.
