By JEFF STITT
A rehabilitation project on the Jerome Street Bridge that PennDOT has been talking about since 2017 is officially underway.
PennDOT District 11 spokesman Steve Cowan advised motorists to expect delays as prime contractor Joseph B. Fay Co. began rehabilitation work Monday on the bridge, which spans the Youghiogheny River and is located near that river’s confluence with the Monongahela River.
Traffic is reduced to a single 10-foot-lane in each direction around the clock through late March between Romine Avenue and Gibson Way.
The Jerome Street Bridge connects downtown McKeesport to the city’s 10th Ward, Port Vue and West Fifth Avenue, which leads to the Mansfield Bridge.
The northern sidewalk of the bridge is closed to pedestrian traffic, but one sidewalk remains open for pedestrians and cyclists traveling to the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) trail, which remains open. The McKeesport portion of the GAP trail passes under the Jerome Street Bridge.
The $15.44 million project includes installing a new concrete deck and sidewalk, barrier repairs, full painting, structural steel repairs, bearing replacement, concrete substructure repairs and new expansion dams.
“The overall project is anticipated to conclude in November 2022,” Cowan said. “Please use caution when traveling through the area.”
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