PennDOT rolled out plans this week for the rehabilitation of the bridge, which carried Rt. 59 over the Kinzua arm of the Allegheny Reservoir.

“The purpose of the plans display is to introduce the project and receive public input regarding any questions or concerns with the project,” PennDOT Press Officer Jill Harry said.

According to PennDOT, the rehabilitation effort will include “structural steel repairs to the truss members, concrete repairs to the bridge piers and abutments, bearing replacements, and replacement of a navigational lighting system.”

A presentation included as part of the online plans display, which can be found at PennDOT’s District 1 website under “Construction Projects and Roadwork” and then under the tab for Warren County, states that the steel repairs are needed to “address minor corrosion” and are “isolated” in nature.

Times Observer photo by Josh Cotton Bridge inspection crews were on the Morrison Bridge this week. A substantial rehabilitation of the structure is slated to start next spring.

The navigation lighting system will be replaced “to enhance boater safety.”

One lane of the bridge will be closed at a time for the duration of the project with temporary signals to be placed at each end of the bridge.

There will also be temporary signage to alert boating traffic to the work.

There will be two, 48-hour periods where the bridge will be closed completely.

According to PennDOT, those will both take place after Labor Day “and the peak recreational season” next fall.

During those short windows, the detour – Route 59, to Route 321 to Route 6 to Route 59 – will be in excess of 62 miles.

The bridge was built as part of the Kinzua Dam project and was erected in 1962.

According to the agency, the concrete deck and barriers were replaced in 1989 and the steel was repainted in 1990.

The most recent work was in 2020 when the concrete was again replaced in addition to other work totaling $1.5 million.

Traffic was controlled via temporary signals for that project, as well.

PennDOT says the bridge is currently in fair condition and that about 1,000 vehicles use the bridge each day.

According to PennDOT’s presentation, construction is expected to start in spring 2024 and be completed by spring 2025.

“This project will cost approximately $3.5 million and is 100 percent federally funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,” PennDOT officials said.

PennDOT sought to highlight that piece of legislation, which will bring $23.7 million in additional funding to the region in 2023.

The bridge has had multiple names through the years – the Morrison Bridge, the Casey Bridge, the bridge over the Allegheny River on Route 59. A 1978 action by the Pennsylvania General Assembly settled the debate, formally naming the bridge the “James Morrison Memorial Bridge.” Morrison was an early settler in Warren County.

Here’s what Act 4 of 1978 said about Morrison: “James Morrison, who moved with his family to Warren County about 1800, is believed to have been the first permanent settler of Kinzua Township. Previously, Morrison had rendered active service during the Revolutionary War, having engaged in combat at Staten Island in 1776 and in the crucial victory at Trenton on the day after Christmas. In recognition of the foresight, courage and independence of this early Pennsylvania pioneer, the General Assembly hereby recognizes his achievements by affixing his name to a bridge in his adopted Warren County.

The plans displayed on PennDOT’s website will be open until Nov. 3. Comments on the project can be offered on that page.