Temporary traffic improvements may be on the way to reduce congestion in West Pittston and Pittston caused by closure of the Luzerne County-owned Firefighters’ Memorial Bridge over the Susquehanna River, commonly known as the Water Street crossing.
Traffic on the nearby state-owned Spc. Dale J. Kridlo Bridge (Fort Jenkins) has increased dramatically since the Water Street span closed in 2021. The state agreed to assume responsibility for the design and construction to replace both bridges, but completion will take years, officials said.
County council members did not raise any objections or concerns at this week’s work session when the county administration presented a request to allocate $50,000 to fund a traffic analysis and temporary traffic signal design for intersections near the Fort Jenkins bridge.
County Manager Romilda Crocamo told council the county is only paying for the design of temporary traffic alterations aimed at improving public safety and decreasing congestion. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has agreed to fund the recommended enhancements, she said.
The administration proposes covering the $50,000 with the county’s “Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Fund” allocation, which was provided as part of the federal American Rescue Plan Act to support eligible counties that have federal property within their jurisdiction. Luzerne County’s consistency fund allocations are $50,000 annually for both 2022 and 2023, government reports said.
Overall, the traffic analysis and signal design will cost $106,508, and the county would fund the remainder with money already in the county engineering department budget, the administration said.
A budget amendment ordinance is necessary for the county to move the funds, which will require an ordinance introduction at council’s Oct. 10 meeting and a public hearing and final passage at a subsequent meeting.
Tom Reilly, president of Reilly Associates in Pittston, had briefed council in May on the need for temporary traffic solutions. Reilly represented municipalities impacted by closure of the county bridge, and county officials acknowledged municipalities don’t have the financial resources to fund the design.
Reilly had said data compiled from the analysis could be used to optimize traffic signals to accommodate traffic pattern changes caused by the bridge closure. For example, he said there is now a “big backup on Route 92 and Exeter Avenue.”
A temporary signal may be proposed, he had said.
A map highlighting possible traffic signal improvement areas was publicly posted as an attachment to council’s May 23 agenda at luzernecounty.org.
In a related issue, the county has finished a project to install chain link security fencing around the Water Street Bridge to prevent pedestrian and vehicle access, Crocamo said.
After a public bid process, the $18,850 fence contract was awarded to Tri County Fence and Rail in West Pittston, records show.