Contracts awarded for $5.6M sidewalk, drainage project at Easton-Phillipsburg Toll Bridge
PHILLIPSBURG, N.J. (Warren County) — The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission has awarded two contracts totaling nearly $5.6 million for a 2027 project to reconstruct sidewalks, replace supporting steel and improve drainage on the New Jersey approach viaduct to the Easton-Phillipsburg Toll Bridge.
The viaduct carries Route 22 traffic in both directions over Broad Street and former Pennsylvania Railroad property in Phillipsburg. The 430-foot-long, five-span elevated structure was constructed along with the toll bridge between 1936 and 1938.
The viaduct has sidewalks on its upstream and downstream sides that have deteriorated to the point where pieces of concrete have broken loose and fallen during the past two years, according to the commission.
Commission maintenance crews have made repairs and installed netting beneath the sidewalks over Broad Street to prevent injuries to pedestrians and damage to vehicles traveling below. A recent inspection also identified several areas where steel floor beams, girders and stringers supporting the sidewalks need to be replaced.
The project will demolish the existing sidewalks and install new concrete sidewalks. The new surfaces will be sloped to direct water onto the adjoining roadway rather than directly off the viaduct.
Portions of the steel supporting the sidewalks will also be replaced or reinforced as needed, and two additional stormwater inlets will be installed along the viaduct’s roadway surface. Supporting steel will be cleaned and painted as warranted.
The project will also include work on the bridge’s electronic surveillance system and electrical infrastructure. Fiber-optic and electrical conduits serving bridge security cameras will be replaced and relocated, new service cabinets will be installed and conduit and innerduct for lighting infrastructure will be replaced where needed.
The commission approved the two contracts at its Sept. 28 meeting in Yardley, Pennsylvania.
Sparwick Contracting of Lafayette was awarded the construction contract for an amount not to exceed $4,472,472. Envision Consultants Ltd. of Mullica Hill was awarded a construction management and inspection contract for an amount not to exceed $1,114,338.23.
Project preparations are expected to begin later this year with measuring and surveying of the project area and the purchase of materials.
Demolition and construction are anticipated to begin in early 2027 and continue into the fall, with travel impacts expected for motorists and pedestrians.
The commission plans to replace one sidewalk at a time to maintain pedestrian access across the viaduct and toll bridge during construction. Details about the sequence of work and associated travel impacts will be announced after the contractor receives notice to proceed and a firm construction start date is established.
The Easton-Phillipsburg Toll Bridge carries Route 22 over the Delaware River between Phillipsburg and Easton, Pennsylvania. The bridge opened to traffic Jan. 14, 1938, and carried an average of 34,400 vehicles per day in 2025, according to the commission.
