The Water Street and Fort Jenkins Bridges were built 100 years ago.
"We need to move progress forward and I think this opportunity has been created ... by a not so great situation," said Pittston Mayor Michael Lombardo.
Lombardo joined local, state and federal representatives in West Pittston Monday near the currently closed Water Street Bridge. Both structures are getting much needed upgrades through $19 million in funding from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Acts.
PennDOT closed the Water Street Bridge in 2021. The city and the borough have been working together on the plans, said West Pittston Mayor Angelo Alfano. The bridge at the base of Susquehanna and Luzerne Avenues will be replaced first. Improving pedestrian and cycling infrastructure on the bridges is part of the plans.
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright helped deliver the funding.
Casey said rebuilding the bridges is about more than safety.
“If you have a functioning bridge in a community, it's more likely there's going to be economic growth," he said.
The bridge project is part of 162 infrastructure projects nationwide funded by the act, said Cartwright.
The speakers at the press conference Monday stressed that all levels of government from both parties worked together.
"And I think that's a really important message," said Lombardo.
