State Route 322 Over East Brandywine Creek, Downingtown, Pennsylvania

This week’s Wrecking Wednesday highlights the removal of State Route 322 bridge over east Branch Brandywine Creek in Downingtown, PA.  Sessler came in to remove the structure as it deteriorated over time, which would lead to installation of a new structure.  Our crew began by removing the concrete decking of a sidewalk which ran parallel to the structure for pedestrian traffic.  A bucket was placed underneath the steel frame to capture the falling debris so it would not end up in the creek bed below.  Once the floor of the sidewalk was removed, our team removed the steel support beams and concrete barrier which would also be contained by the bucket below.

Once the sidewalks were removed, our crew began removing the decking of the bridge by cutting the concrete into manageable pieces for ease of removal and processing.  While removing the deck, the bridge’s floor beams became exposed we simultaneously removed them as well to complete the deck removal process as efficiently as possible.  Lastly, the steel thru-girders would be separated from the center pier, and dragged out to be sent to an offsite approved facility.