Tamaqua is no longer a divided town.

Shortly after 11 a.m. Wednesday, construction crews removed steel barricades and opened sidewalks on the East Broad Street bridge that crosses the Little Schuylkill River.That move opened the span to pedestrian traffic and united the east and west sides of town for the first time in 16 months.In the background, road crews were busy laying macadam on the street surface in hope of opening the main thoroughfare to vehicles today, provided rain doesn't delay resurfacing."We'll see how the weather goes," said Joe Yodis, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation project supervisor."We're actually two months ahead of schedule because we had counted on the end of November," he said.Yodis had just completed bridge inspection and had touched bases with supervisor Kevin Kistler of H & K Group, Reading and Annville, the firm overseeing resurfacing.The bridge is part of Tamaqua's main street and also serves as Route 209, a U.S. highway.Borough council President Micah Gursky said an impromptu reopening ceremony with council members and the mayor would take place at 2 p.m. today.Additional workThere still are some project-related components to be addressed, according to PennDOT."There are 50 miles of detours," said Yodis.Highway detour signs stretch for miles in every direction and in many neighboring municipalities, such as Schuylkill Township, Hometown, Coaldale and Nesquehoning. Those will be dismantled in coming days.Bridge lighting will be completed by Tamaqua borough and parking meters installed. Parking patterns on that block also will be restored to original configuration.The bridge was closed to vehicles and pedestrians on June 3, 2013, resulting in major rerouting. The reopening of the thoroughfare is being met with appreciation."Thank God for this," said the Rev. Kevin Roberts, pastor of Bethany Evangelical Congregational Church, on hand with wife Danette.The church is located on Broad Street at the river edge. When the bridge closed, the congregation was forced to move all activities and worship services to the Tamaqua YMCA. Members are looking forward to returning home."We'll be back here on Sunday," Roberts said.Newly linked main street also means bands, floats and goblins of Tamaqua's Oct. 28 Halloween parade will be able to march straight through town without detour.Last year, that parade and the Memorial Day parade veered off Broad Street and zigzagged through lower Dutch Hill before rejoining the main street."This is wonderful," said pedestrian Al Hadesty of Tamaqua, among the first to cross the north sidewalk.Deeann Breiner and Alice Neff were first to cross the south sidewalk."We're excited about this," said Breiner, activities coordinator of the adjacent ABC Tamaqua High Rise complex. "Our residents use this bridge all the time."The first bicycle to cross the bridge took place at 12:06 p.m., ridden by Charlie Hess of Tamaqua."This is great," said Hess. "I now can take a straight shot to the YMCA instead of going all around the hills."Crews reconstructed three stone arches along with the bridge surface and sidewalks.Yodis expressed surprise at how well the original stonework had maintained its integrity."We redid a top wall. For the arches, we added mortar," he said.Past rediscoveredThe current stone masonry span is believed to have been completed in 1904 and was widened in 1933 to include concrete sidewalks.Yodis said one surprise was the discovery of a signed and dated boulder uncovered in April.The half-ton rock was found in the river bed and features ornate, carved letters: "J.C. Springer, Tues. April 23, 1878," flanked by initials C.E. and A.R., along with initials W.S. at the bottom.Tamaqua historians believe the rock was part of the foundation of an earlier wooden bridge, perhaps a covered bridge, that once existed at that location and which appears on 1880s Sanborn mapsRecognizing it as a piece of history, Yodis extracted the rock and transported it to a nearby PennDOT field office.It now is on display in front of the ABC Tamaqua High Rise at the base of the flagpole.The East Broad Street bridge carries two traffic lanes, two parking lanes, and two concrete sidewalks.The structure is designated a strong contributing resource to the Tamaqua National Historic District and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places of the National Park Service.Blooming Glen Contractors Inc. of Blooming Glen was awarded the $2,493,465 restoration project.The bridge originally was 100 feet long and 58 feet wide.The new bridge is 116 feet long and will carry an estimated 6,450 vehicles per day.