The covered bridge in Lower Towamensing Township is once again open to vehicles.

To mark the reopening, state and local officials gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday morning at the bridge along Covered Bridge Road.Lower Towamensing Township Supervisor Ron Walbert expressed his pleasure with the bridge."I'd like to thank the commissioners of Carbon County for their commitment to maintaining the bridge," Walbert said. "They have fulfilled their commitment, and we appreciate it very much."Carbon County Commissioner William O'Gurek said the project was possible through state funds."We wanted to honor the commitment," O'Gurek said. "This is a perfect example of everyone working together."Carbon County Commissioner Thomas J. Gerhard said the project was a "team effort."Gerhard specifically thanked county administrator Ellie Ahner, Michael Tirpak of Carbon Engineering Inc. and Jay McGee of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation for their efforts."It's a great day for Carbon County," Gerhard said.State Rep. Doyle Heffley, R-Carbon, said the bridge is an example of people working together."Carbon County is a very unique county, and the covered bridge in Little Gap is kind of our identity," Heffley said."It's great to keep it open. It serves a real purpose and a practical purpose to preserve our heritage, and it still serves a much-needed purpose."Carbon County Commissioner Chairman Wayne Nothstein cautioned motorists who use the bridge to follow the regulations, as there are height restrictions in place.But in the past those have been ignored, as larger vehicles still attempted to cross the bridge, knocking down beams and damaging the decades-old structure.As a result, the bridge, formally known as bridge 17, has been the victim of numerous vehicle strikes over the past several years.Professional Construction Contractors Inc. of Bethlehem completed the bridge project at a cost of $291,126.The cost included replacing the open-grid steel deck, sandblasting and painting the bridge and was covered by Act 13 bridge improvement funds, along with Act 44 funds.