Millvale residents and visitors are expected to get a reprieve from detours within the next few years.
During a public meeting May 21 at the Millvale Community Center, representatives from PennDOT and the borough outlined preliminary plans for a $6 million project that will replace three bridges, each of which is over 100 years old.
The Grant Avenue Bridge and two bridges along Lincoln Avenue spanning over Girtys Run are targeted for replacement, said Masha Rowley, a consultant manager with STV Inc., an engineering consultant working with PennDOT and the borough.
“Girtys Run pretty much runs across the whole town,” Rowley said, “and all the buildings and bridges are constructed over top of the (stream).”
PennDOT will be working with the Army Corps of Engineers to direct the stream’s flow during the work.
The Lincoln Avenue bridges, dubbed Lincoln Ave. No. 7 and Lincoln Ave. No. 13, are scheduled to be completed first, concurrently starting in spring 2028. Work is expected to be completed by that fall.
Lincoln Ave. No. 7 has been closed since 2023. It was built in 1911.
“Grant Avenue (Bridge No. 8) is a similar story,” Rowley said. “It was built before the moving pictures theater was constructed.”
Work on Grant Avenue is expected to begin in spring 2029 and be completed by that fall.
The sidewalk along Lincoln Ave. No. 13 has been closed since last year, and the weight limit of the bridge is set at 3 tons. The sidewalk will remain closed during the work due to the beams’ placement, Rowley said.
Monica Diel attended the meeting to ask questions. She has been a property owner in the borough since 2020 and works part time for multiple businesses in town. She said the bridges closing have limited access to those businesses.
“It’s really interesting to see the way our town has kind of been crippled by the shutting down of these bridges,” Diel said. “We don’t have good public transit access anymore because (the buses) can’t go over the bridges, because they can’t support them.”
Joe Kypta, head of the borough’s public works department, said the Lincoln Avenue repairs mean PRT buses will be able to once again drive through the borough.
While there are still bus stops in Millvale, pedestrains have had to take detours around the closed and limited weight sections of Lincoln to reach them.
As someone who doesn’t own a car, Diel said the relocation has been inconvenient for her and outright difficult for her elderly neighbors.
“You have to walk the entire way across town to get on the bus now,” Diel said.
She said she feels pretty comfortable with the plan laid out by the borough and PennDOT.
“It sounds like there’s supposed to be a minimal amount of interference with everything, which is nice,” Diel said. “And it sounds like they want to preserve walkways as much as they can, which is huge for the people that live here and the businesses. These are going through all of our major business districts.”
All three bridges are planned to be replaced with steel beam bridges. Rowley said there will be some excavation work during the beam replacement.
Jackie Evans, a right of way coordinator for PennDOT, said she does not expect any surrounding structures to be affected.
“As of right now, there are no total displacements or structures that need to be taken out,” Evans said.
Zach Patterson, PennDOT senior project manager, said it’s not likely this will change despite the plans presented being preliminary.
“We’re pretty far along in the design process,” he told TribLive after the meeting.
Patterson said PennDOT has been in discussion with the borough about the bridge repair project since early 2024. The project is estimated to cost $6 million.
There will be motorist and pedestrian detours in place during the work. Access to buildings along Grant and Lincoln avenues will remain uninhibited to customers.
Driving detours detailed for bridge work
Lincoln Avenue Bridge No. 7
For traffic on the east side of the bridge on Lincoln Avenue:
• Eastbound right or westbound left onto East Sherman Street
• Left onto Grant Avenue
• Left onto East Ohio Street
• Continue onto Evergreen Avenue
• Left onto Klopfer Street
• Left onto North Avenue
• End at Lincoln Avenue
For traffic on the west side of the bridge on North Avenue:
• Northbound right or southbound left onto North Avenue
• Right onto Evergreen Avenue
• Continue onto East Ohio Street
• Right onto Grant Avenue
• Right onto East Sherman Street
• End at Lincoln Avenue
Lincoln Avenue Bridge No. 13
For traffic on the east side of the bridge on East Ohio Street (Route 4009):
• Northbound left or southbound right onto Grant Street
• Right onto East Sherman Street
• End at Lincoln Avenue
For traffic on the west side of the bridge on Lincoln Avenue:
• Eastbound right or westbound left onto East Sherman Street
• Left onto Grant Avenue
• Left onto East Ohio Street
• End at Lincoln Avenue
Grant Avenue Bridge No. 8
For traffic on the east side of the bridge on East Ohio Street:
• Northbound left or southbound right onto Grant Avenue
• Right onto East Sherman Street
• Left onto Lincoln Avenue
• Left onto North Avenue
• End at Grant Avenue
For traffic on the west side of the bridge on North Avenue:
• Northbound right or southbound left onto Lincoln Avenue
• Right onto East Sherman Street
• End at Grant Avenue