$25M, 2-year preservation project on New Kensington Bridge to start in spring

A two-year, roughly $25 million project to preserve the nearly century-old New Kensington Bridge is scheduled to start in the spring.

While drivers will encounter some traffic restrictions in 2023, the biggest inconvenience won’t come until the summer of 2024, when the bridge is scheduled to be closed for six weeks, PennDOT project manager Mike Szurley said.

While Tarentum manager Dwight Boddorf said his borough is not expecting major impacts, East Deer Commissioner Tony Taliani Jr. is more concerned because his township has been through this before.

“If (motorists) can’t cross that bridge, they’re going to have to come through East Deer to get to the Tarentum Bridge or farther south to the Oakmont Bridge,” Taliani said. “We are going to be in the bull’s-eye as far as traffic is concerned with that.”

Taliani said township officials are expecting tremendous traffic problems, particularly around rush hour, when the bridge is closed.

“Our hope is that PennDOT will provide us with some funding to have additional police to direct traffic so we can help alleviate the traffic impact,” he said. “It’s not a burden we feel East Deer Township should have to pay for.”

About 15,850 vehicles cross the bridge over the Allegheny River between East Deer and New Kensington each day, according to PennDOT. Of those vehicles, 7% are trucks.

The bridge was built in 1927 and last rehabilitated with a new deck in 1989. In 1984, it was named for C.L. Schmitt, a state representative from 1964 to 1980 who died in 1993.

The upcoming work will include applying new overlays to the bridge deck and sidewalk, structural steel repairs, expansion and tooth dam replacement, concrete repairs, full painting and replacement of lights.

Szurley said the bridge is considered to be in fair condition with no weight limits or structural concerns. But, because the last major rehabilitation project was more than three decades ago, he said it is definitely due for it.

The preservation project is expected to extend the bridge’s life span by 3o to 50 years, Szurley said.

The bridge will be repainted in a royal blue color that is darker than the baby blue it was last painted, which has faded over time.

PennDOT spokesman Steve Cowan said the department is working on finalizing the project’s contract.

Szurley said the agency anticipates giving the contractor notice to proceed at the end of January, with work starting in mid- to late March. It would not be finished until the winter of 2024.

All dates are weather-dependent.

Drivers will not see any major restrictions on the bridge in 2023, Szurley said. Short-term restrictions — limiting the two-lane bridge to a single alternating lane — will happen only during off-peak hours, with no restrictions from 6 to 9 a.m. and 3 to 6 p.m. weekdays and on weekends.

The bridge will not be closed in 2023, Szurley said.

In 2024, the six-week closure is anticipated to start June 24, Szurley said. The 10th Street ramp that goes under the bridge on the New Kensington side and the ramp taking northbound Freeport Road under it on the East Deer side also will be closed.

The signal on Freeport Road at the bridge, which normally requires northbound vehicles to turn right onto the bridge, will be retimed to allow traffic traveling toward Tarentum to continue north.

On Taliani’s traffic concerns, Szurley said the contract includes a provision for off-duty, uniformed police officers to help at all intersections. The contractor will be required to meet with municipal officials to ensure they are satisfied with traffic control and make any needed changes.

The bridge will be closed to pedestrians longer than vehicles, with the closure starting at the same time but continuing to November 2024, Szurley said. A shuttle will be provided for pedestrians that will take the main detour route using the Tarentum Bridge.

Szurley said the shuttle will operate on demand, with a phone number on signs at stops for people to call to be picked up. It will operate from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily while the bridge is closed to pedestrians.

The goal is for the bridge to reopen in time for the 2024-25 school year, Szurley said.