Lt. Gov. Austin Davis and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation announced Thursday the state has awarded $132 million in discretionary funds to help upgrade three major bridges — the Fort Duquesne Bridge, the West End Bridge and the McKees Rocks Bridge.

That money will be used to jump-start ongoing design work to improve the bridges, which have been identified as high-priority projects, but PennDOT didn’t have the money to move forward to construction. The special grants — $60 million for Fort Duquesne, $47 million for West End and $25 million for McKees Rocks — only cover a portion of the estimated costs for the projects but will move the work up by several years, said Jason Zang, PennDOT’s district executive for Allegheny, Beaver and Lawrence counties.

Big improvements are on the way for three busy bridges: the McKees Rocks, Fort Duquesne and the West End bridges. The investments total $132 million.

The city of bridges requires a regimen of constant repairs. Local politicians say they fought for the money and got it.

These bridges are old and need critical work now. Our local leaders found some more money, but two questions still remain: Will it be enough? And how long do we need to wait before work gets going?

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation announced that the Fort Duquesne Bridge, the West End Bridge and the McKees Rocks Bridge will all undergo major repair work that will last several years, at a cost of $132 million.

Structural repairs to decks, surfaces, underbellies and beams are some of the areas that will gain attention for the projects.

This week, we’re taking a look at Pittsburgh Regional Transit.

Like many institutions, it has faced challenges over its 60-year history, but the agency says it’s always working to be better. We discuss what the agency has in store for 2024, the challenges PRT is facing and improvements that riders would like to see.

The new executive director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission is no stranger to the 10 counties in that organization.

Rich Fitzgerald was Allegheny County’s executive for 12 years, but also served on the SPC board and its executive committee.

Still, Fitzgerald is planning to meet with the boards of commissioners in Indiana, Armstrong, Westmoreland and other counties that surround Allegheny.

His meeting with the Indiana County Commissioners is scheduled for Jan. 22.

“One of my jobs will be to hear from the commissioners what their goals are,” Fitzgerald said Tuesday in an interview that also is for an upcoming annual business review in The Indiana Gazette.

The Pittsburgh Business Times has named the Pittsburgh Power 100, a listing of the region’s most influential business leaders. 

The complete list is presented alphabetically below. Profiles will be published in the Feb. 16 weekly edition. The Power 100 is not a ranking, but rather a guide that aims to reflect who are the most influential people at this moment in time. The editorial staff of the Business Times selected those who made the list, with input from the community at large. It does not include elected officials and is limited to those who currently reside in the Pittsburgh metro area. 

The Southwest Pennsylvania Commission will host an in-person and virtual federal Climate Pollution Reduction Grants Workshop on January 8 at the SPC Offices, Strip District Terminal Building, 21st and Smallman Streets in Pittsburgh from 10:00 a.m. to Noon.

This SPC Workshop is your chance to learn about reducing pollution and making a positive impact on our environment and will provide valuable insights and strategies for implementing climate pollution reduction projects.

Rich Fitzgerald joined Tyler Friel during the WISR News at Noon. 

Outgoing Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald has already announced starting next year he will become the Executive Director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission.

In his new role he will be overseeing economic development in the 10-county western Pennsylvania region.

At this time last year, Cheryl Moon-Sirianni outlined a series of projects to improve the Parkway East, which hasn’t had a major overhaul in more than 30 years.

On Monday, the former district executive who now has a statewide job with the state Department of Transportation got several of those projects funded through a federal grant, plus additional money for a series of projects that will benefit bus riders who use the Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway. 

Western Pennsylvania’s eastern corridor is set to get a massive investment in two of its most important pieces of transportation infrastructure, the Parkway East and the East Busway.

The offices of U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and John Fetterman (D-PA) along with U.S. Representative Summer Lee (D-PA-14) and Chris DeLuzio (D-PA-17) announced $142.3 million in federal infrastructure funding dedicated to the Parkway East and East Busway.