​Maclay Street Bridge

Overview

This project is the replacement of the Maclay Street Bridge over the Norfolk Southern Rail Yard in the City of Harrisburg. The project extends west-to-east from the Maclay Street/7^th Street intersection to Julia Street which is a half of a block west of Cameron Street. Maclay Street is a gateway into the City and is one of only six (6) crossings over/ under Norfolk Southern facilities linking the eastern and western portions of Harrisburg. The Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex is located along the eastern portion of the project area with a parking lot and entrance that can be accessed from Maclay Street. The Farm Show hosts a variety of events throughout the year that generate large volumes of traffic, both vehicular and pedestrian. The existing 7-span bridge crosses 11 tracks in the Norfolk Southern Rail Yard that is a major multi-modal hub. The primary operation in the rail yard is the transfer of railroad boxes to tractor trailers but the yard also includes Norfolk Southern and Amtrak mainline tracks. The existing bridge (circa 1940) is in poor condition with advanced deterioration to the primary load carrying members. Maclay Street carries an average of 25,172 vehicles/day with 3% trucks and is a vital link for emergency services. Capital Area Transit (CAT) and local school busses also use the bridge.

The bridge replacement project will resolve a number of issues on Maclay Street within the project limits and will tie into another project that is improving the intersection of Cameron Street and Maclay Street. The Maclay Street bridge project will:

• Provide a safe and structurally sound crossing of the Norfolk Southern Harrisburg Rail Yard. A new 4-span steel girder bridge is being proposed.
• Increase the vertical clearance of the bridge over the rail yard from 21 feet to the standard 23 feet for double-stacked rail cars. The profile of the Maclay Street roadway will be raised over the rail yard.
• Reduce traffic congestion at the 7^th Street intersection with Maclay Street. Maclay Street will be widened from 4-lanes existing to 5-lanes proposed in the project area. At the intersection, westbound traffic will have designated lanes for through traffic on Maclay Street, right turn to head north on 7^th Street, left turn to head south on 7^th Street. Eastbound traffic will be carried on the remaining two lanes. On the west leg of the 7^th Street intersection, a right turn lane will be added to Maclay Street to head south on 7^th Street.
• Accommodate pedestrian and bicycle traffic on Maclay Street. Sidewalks of similar width to the existing sidewalks will be constructed on each side of Maclay Street and bicycle lanes will be added in both the eastbound and westbound directions.

To accommodate the roadway widening in the project area, the bridge carrying Maclay Street over Paxton Creek will be also replaced along with the bridge over the railroad. The width of the bridges will be increased from 62 feet (existing) to 86 feet (proposed) out-to out. The new bridges will carry five (5) 11-foot wide lanes, two (2) 6-foot wide bike lanes, and two (2) 8-foot wide sidewalks.

Construction work outside of the existing legal right-of-way is anticipated. Overhead and underground utilities within the area of construction will need to be relocated.

Construction will be performed in stages while maintaining three (3) lanes of traffic and at least one sidewalk in each stage. The temporary lane configuration will carry two (2) lanes of traffic westbound into the City and one (1) lane of traffic eastbound out of the City. Construction is anticipated from 2024 through 2026.

Three historic resources have been identified in the project area: the railroad, the existing bridge, and the Farm Show. A Memorandum of Agreement that defines mitigation to adverse effects that the project will have to these resources has been developed and is under review.

The purpose of the plans display is to introduce the project and solicit public input, questions, or concerns regarding the project.

A digital version of this plans display will be available to view online from July 8, 2022 to August 5, 2022.