Trail council breaking ground on PT bridge
The Montour Trail Council plans a groundbreaking ceremony for its Valley Brook Bridge No. 2 bridge project at 1 p.m. Sunday in Peters Township.
The new bridge, which the council refers to as “VB2,” will cross Valley Brook Road, approximately 700 feet west of Route 19, using one of the abutments of the former Montour Railroad.
The ceremony will take place on the adjacent property of Tom Robinson, owner of TAR Storage, accessible via his driveway west of the bridge site at 150 Valley Brook Road.
The brief ceremony will include presentations by those representing government agencies, elected officials and Montour Trail Council leaders, along with information on the progress of other nearby trail projects. The owners of Burgh’s Pizza and Wing Pub, Bridgeville, will present a check for the proceeds from their annual 5- and 10-kilometer run, held on the Montour Trail in April.
The completion of the bridge, anticipated in July 2015, will mark a significant milestone for the Montour Trail. As the last bridge project in Peters Township, it will eliminate a dangerous intersection and will enable trail users to travel from Route 88 in South Park to Route 50 in Cecil, a distance of 15 miles, without crossing any roads.
Marricco Construction is the project contractor. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency and Washington County Local Share Account of gambling revenue from The Meadows Racetrack & Casino have contributed to the estimated $1.5 million cost.
The Montour Trail’s mainline rails-to-trail conversion extends for 47 miles from Moon Township near the Ohio River to Clairton on the Monongahela, with an additional 13 miles of branches leading to Pittsburgh International Airport, Westland, and Bethel Park. The Montour Trail Council calls it the longest suburban rail-trail in the United States. The Montour Trail also provides bicyclists with a connection between the Pittsburgh Airport and the Great Allegheny Passage trail to Washington, D.C.