SEPTA’s plans to replace the bridge over N. Easton Road in Glenside this spring may be delayed following negotiations between local business owners and SEPTA officials.

Current plans call for the replacement to begin in March and span roughly 5-6 weeks. The project would shut down Easton Road between Mount Carmel Avenue and Glenside Avenue.

The final design traffic detour was presented to Cheltenham Township, Abington Township, and PennDOT in November. Engineer Dominic Marchesano told township officials that the project involves concrete repairs to abutment walls, center pier support, and bridge superstructure, as well as partial platform repair at Glenside Station, according to Cheltenham Township’s minutes from December 4.

Cheltenham Commissioner Matt Areman asked SEPTA if the bridge’s mural will be preserved and was assured that the artists will be contacted, and the mural will be protected, the minutes said.

Lauren Walter, Cheltenham Township’s public information officer, said that the project’s timeline and detours were discussed again at Public Works meetings in December and January.

According to the traffic control map below, plans for the project date back to 2022:

Tim Way, owner of The Ways Restaurant & Brewery which borders the railway and part of the bridge, told Glenside Local that he was contacted by Bob Kent, a SEPTA spokesperson, on Friday, January 10. He and Brigett Gordon, owner of The Royal Music & Arts Center two doors up the road, expect to speak with Mr. Kent and SEPTA’s project team today to request a delay until this summer.

“April and May is our busiest time of year. People want to sit outside and enjoy the weather,” Way said. “No one wants to sit next to a construction zone. They’re also closing the road at the intersection, and I haven’t gotten any full reassurances that the driveway is going to stay open.”

According to Way, Kent told him in that conversation that the timeframe was set in stone and that the project could take as long as eight weeks.

“I know the work needs to be done, but things slow down in the summer. People go on vacation, so that seems like a better time to do it. I’m hoping they push it back two months and work through the summer,” Way said. “I let him know it would have been nice to include us in the planning.”

Glenside Local reached out to nearby St. Luke’s School on N. Easton Road and Fairhill Avenue to see if the school had been notified about the project. Their front office said they had not heard about it.

“Nobody’s really communicated with us. It’s going to be a problem,” Gordon said. “To do this in April or May is a bad time for businesses. That’s when people are out and about.”

Gordon reached out to multiple business owners in the area to request a delay. As of Wednesday, she was optimistic about the negotiations.

“They do hear us and they want to work with us,” she said.

The bridge over Keswick Avenue “will be dismantled and transported offsite to a staging area, where it will be broken down. A new bridge will be assembled at the staging area and transported by the SPMT [Self-propelled Modular Transport] for installation and any additional repairs,” Cheltenham Township’s minutes from December 4 said.

Keswick Avenue would be closed between Mt. Carmel and Paxson for roughly 12 days and would take place around Memorial Day weekend.

Both projects are part of SEPTA’s Bridges Rehabilitation Project. We will be in touch with updates as they are available.

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Photos: Google