Keystone Today

It has been a little less than a year since the Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh collapsed, and after a collaborative effort, a new bridge has been built and is open for use.

Gov. Tom Wolf (D-PA) and various officials were on hand for a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new bridge on Dec. 21, according to the governor's website. The bridge is owned by the city of Pittsburgh and follows Forbes Avenue over Frick Park, Fern Hollow Creek and Tranquil Trail. It collapsed on Jan. 28, 2022, and was back up and running on Dec. 22 -- at least for one lane, as construction will continue into the spring.

“This is a historic day for Pittsburgh,” Mayor Ed Gainey said, according to the governor's website. “The rebuilding of Fern Hollow Bridge in less than one year shows what we can accomplish when we work together. Thank you to President (Joe) Biden, Gov. Wolf, PennDOT and everyone who made this day possible.”

Right after the collapse of the bridge in January, Wolf and Gainey issued a declaration of disaster emergency proclamations, allowing the city to go into a legal agreement, which gave the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) the ability to manage the design and construction of the new bridge. This also allowed for the Federal Highway Administration and PennDOT to immediately approve Swank Construction Company and HDR, Inc., to remove the existing bridge remains, as well as design and build the new Fern Hollow Bridge.

“Today’s event underscores the importance of working together collaboratively to address the biggest issues in our community,” Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald told the governor's website. “From the first response, to the efforts to secure federal infrastructure funding, to the work done by Gov. Wolf, Secretary (Yassmin) Gramian and PennDOT with the city of Pittsburgh, this project has been a model of what can be accomplished when everyone contributes to finding solutions and taking action. Less than a year after the collapse of the Fern Hollow Bridge, we mark its forthcoming opening. Congratulations to everyone involved in the effort and thank you to President Biden and all of our partners on the federal level for their work to get the federal infrastructure bill passed.”

“I was here on Jan. 28 to survey the damage from the collapse, and today, less than a year later, I stand before a bridge that is nearly ready to reopen to traffic," Wolf said, according to his website. "This is the power of government working for the people in Pennsylvania. I’m thankful to all of our partners in state, local and federal government for your partnership and coordination to rebuild the Fern Hollow Bridge in less than a year. It’s an honor to be here to celebrate this incredible milestone for Pittsburgh.”

PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian was among the officials at the ribbon cutting, who praised the effort that went into making the new bridge a reality.

“This new bridge is the result of incredible collaboration,” Gramian said, according to the governor's website. “And thanks to the federal investment through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we were able to quickly mobilize to rebuild this bridge without impacting funds for other important projects.”

She was there along with U.S. Department of Transportation Director of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Implementation Katie Thompson, Gainey, Fitzgerald, State Rep. Dan Frankel (D-Pittsburgh) and PennDOT District 11 Executive Cheryl Moon-Sirianni.

“The U.S. Department of Transportation is proud to support the city of Pittsburgh, PennDOT and other project partners who collaborated so effectively to rebuild the Fern Hollow Bridge,” Thomson told the governor's website. “This spirit of teamwork meant decisions could be made quickly, and this vital link for all transportation modes was able to be restored in record time. This remarkable achievement speaks to the professionalism of all involved and dedication to serving the traveling public.”

The project was made possible through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which put $25.3 million of federal money into the project. In all, over five years, there will be $4 billion going to Pennsylvania for highways and bridges, and $600 million in this fiscal year.