A ribbon cutting ceremony was held for the new $88 million Hawk Falls Bridge on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Opened last week, the steel-deck truss bridge replaces the original 1950s bridge.

“Addressing aging infrastructure is a priority of the Pennsylvania Turnpike,” noted Mike Carroll, secretary of transportation for Pennsylvania. “Every motorist deserves a safe and reliable transportation network.”

Chief Engineer Brad Heigel explained that the structural plans for the bridge were designed 14 years ago. Due to the complexity and cost of a bridge project and start and stop, construction began in 2022.

A lot of work goes into the right of way, especially given part of the structure is built on Hickory Run State Park land.

Stacie Hall, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, said, “The bridge spans our Mud Run. We coordinated to do a small land exchange and have no impact on resources.”

The three ribbed arch configuration of the bridge enhances the beauty of Hickory Run State Park, spanning 720 feet across Mud Run Gorge.

State Rep. Doyle Heffley encouraged everyone to “think about commerce, going to and from work. There is a tremendous benefit to the community and businesses to keep it safe.”

Twenty-five thousand vehicles move over the bridge each day. In the 1950s, 53 million cars traveled the turnpike, up to 193 million today. The new bridge supports two lanes of traffic in each direction and increases shoulder and median width for safer travel.

The new bridge was constructed using 8 miles of wiring, 3,304 tons of structural steel, 4,800 cubic yards of concrete and more than 1.1 million pounds of rebar. The large cranes used to construct the arches were delivered in parts and assembled on-site. Each crane took approximately 70 tractor-trailer loads to deliver.

Construction on the new Hawk Falls Bridge project began in 2022. In addition to fully replacing the Hawk Falls Bridge, the project also reconstructed the nearby Hickory Run Road Bridge in Penn Forest and Kidder townships, Carbon County. Trumbull served as its construction contractor on the project.

STV is overseeing the demolition and construction activities at the site.

The old bridge will be demolished later this year.