November 06, 2026
@Schuylkillbanks/@StreetsPhiladelphia/Instagram
The Schuylkill Crossing Swing Bridge in Southwest Philadelphia opens to the public Friday, Nov. 13. The span provides a link along the Schuylkill River Trail between the Grays Ferry Crescent and Bartram's Garden.
The long-awaited opening of the Schuylkill Crossing Swing Bridge, a movable span connecting the Grays Ferry Crescent with Bartram's Garden in Southwest Philly, takes place Friday, Nov. 13, with celebrations planned the next day.
The Philadelphia Streets Department and Schuylkill River Development Corp. will debut the crossing during a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Grays Ferry Crescent Esplanade from 2-4 p.m. Friday. Community events on Saturday, Nov. 14, include a guided bridge walk led by WeWalkPHL and a bike ride sponsored by the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia.
The opening follows eight years of site preparation and construction of the 1,000-foot-long span, which will be a vital off-road link for pedestrians and cyclists on the Schuylkill River Trail. The car-free bridge connects the trail network on the west side of the river, at Bartram's Garden, to Grays Ferry on the east side. From there the trail runs into Center City, along Kelly Drive and into Northwest Philly.
The Schuylkill River Trail is a multi-use path that, once fully completed, will run 120 miles from Philadelphia to Frackville, Schuylkill County. Much of the trail is in place, but gaps still exist. The swing bridge eliminates one of them.
The swing bridge sits just south of the Grays Ferry Bridge, and its mechanical pivot system at the center will allow the bridge to open for tall ships passing along the Schuylkill River. People who use the bridge will be alerted to maritime traffic by warning bells. From start to finish, the bridge takes about 3 minutes to open and close.
The project replaces the abandoned rail bridge that originally operated as part of the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad from the early 20th century until it was acquired by Conrail in 1976. The freight company took the steel through-truss swing bridge offline in 1984 and left it in the open position. The structure corroded over subsequent decades, leaving trail users without a continuous path over the lower Schuylkill River.
The previous structure was demolished in 2018, but the new swing bridge preserves the original masonry piers and a pair of approach spans on both sides of the river.
"Bridging the gap between Bartram's Garden and the residents of Southwest Philadelphia to the Schuylkill Banks is a really big deal for the network as a whole," the Bicycle Coalition said in a statement. "It shows the importance of providing new ways to reach your destination by way of walking and biking that can make a positive impact on a person in so many ways."
The swing bridge leads to the Christian to Crescent Connector trail to the north, which includes a 650-foot woven harp, cable-stayed bridge over the river. That section of the Schuylkill River Trail opened last year.
Nicole Seahorn, a program coordinator for WeWalkPHL, joined Southwest Philly residents for a first look at the new swing bridge and its connected trails in September. Until now, Schuylkill River Trail users have had to use the Grays Ferry Avenue Bridge to cross the river.
"When we start to see trails connect, when we start to see pathways connect, then we start to see people connect," she said a in a video previewing the swing bridge.
