Drivers are still being kept in the dark on Leechburg Veterans Memorial Bridge.
Leechburg Mayor Doreen Smeal said borough leadership has been working with PennDOT for more than a year to try to get lights on the bridge working again.
“They didn’t all go out at once,” Smeal said.
There are eight lights on the bridge, none of which has worked for months. Smeal said she believes it’s more than just bad light bulbs.
“There’s a couple residents that filed complaints with PennDOT,” Smeal said. “The lights on the bridge are so old. … The whole thing needs to be replaced. We can’t seem to get anywhere with PennDOT as to when and how they”ll fix this.”
Smeal said the borough’s secretary, council president and individual residents have reached out to PennDOT for answers.
“It’s a state road and it needs to be fixed,” Smeal said. “Leechburg cannot do anything about it.”
The bridge is owned and maintained by PennDOT, which has been working on the project since spring.
According to PennDOT spokesperson Melissa Maczko, the lights need to be replaced.
“We are currently awaiting a quote from the contractor for the light replacement,” Maczko said in an email. “Once the quote is approved and materials are received, the contractor will proceed with installing the new lights.”
Once those materials are received, the work will take “a couple days to repair,” Maczko said.
The bridge was constructed in 1935. It’s almost 670 feet long and about 32 feet wide, according to historicbridges.org. Major bridge repairs were done in 1984, including replacement of the lighting.
