Southwestern Pennsylvania’s transportation infrastructure is slated to receive a slew of expansions, updates and remodels after officials approved a regional transportation improvement plan at a meeting Monday.

The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission approved about $6 billion in funding over a four-year period as part of the 10-county region’s plan to improve its transportation infrastructure, according to a 2023-2026 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) investment summary.

The program’s summary includes $740 million for bridge maintenance, $2.2 billion for roads, $186 million for buses and passenger vehicles and $420 million for operations and safety projects.

“The consideration of the TIP would be looking at how are we an advancing and resilient community,” Leslie Osche, the body’s commissioner, said in an interview Monday.

She added that the four-year TIP plan is part of a 25-year vision to improve Southwestern Pennsylvania’s transportation infrastructure to make it more resilient, connected and competitive.

The TIP, which was unanimously approved by the body Monday, is set to provide funding to rehabilitate or reconstruct 266 bridges and 466 miles of roadway in the region, the commission’s summary report states.

The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission region represents Armstrong, Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington and Westmoreland counties.

The report states that the funding will also focus on serving low-income and minority communities that new transportation construction like highways have historically fractured.

Ms. Osche said the improvements will give people fairer access to transportation.

The SCP has scheduled about $740 million for bridge maintenance across the region. The planned improvements include the Karns Crossing Bridge in Butler County, the McKeesport-Duquesne Bridge in Allegheny County and the U.S. 422 Graff Bridge in Armstrong County.

Read the full article at postgazette.com

Roads and bridges in Southwestern Pennsylvania will see a $300 million boost in funding because of the infrastructure law enacted in 2021.

The extra money is included in a regional plan for $1.5 billion in transportation projects that is set to be approved June 27 by the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission.

The commission’s Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) covers 2023 through 2026 and includes increases in funding for bridges, highway safety improvements and bike-and-pedestrian infrastructure compared to the previous program.

The SPC is responsible for allocating state and federal funds to local transportation infrastructure projects across 10 Southwestern Pennsylvania counties that surround Pittsburgh.

Among the $300 million increase in funding for roads and bridges under the commission’s jurisdiction, $100 million is earmarked just for bridges.

At a June 1 public meeting, SPC staff explained that the increase in funding for Pittsburgh-area transportation infrastructure is thanks to the $1.2 trillion infrastructure law passed by Congress in 2021.

“With passage of the bipartisan law, the highway and bridge funding is back up to higher levels,” said SPC director of transportation planning Domenic D’Andrea.

Roads and bridges are the biggest winners, but bike-and-pedestrian improvements, while still comparatively small, also saw a big jump and increased five-fold compared to the last TIP.

Funds for public transit also saw a modest jump. D’Andrea said this includes some money for capital improvements, but most is for operations. The majority of public transit funds are funneled to Port Authority of Allegheny County — rebranded Pittsburgh Regional Transit last week — the region’s largest public transit agency.

Read the full article at www.triblive.com