The long-awaited reinvestment in transportation statewide can’t come too soon in southwestern Pennsylvania, where neglected roads and bridges leave no doubt there is plenty of work to be done with the region’s share of the $2.3 billion in state transportation funding approved more than a year ago.
The Federal Highway Administration reports that 24.4 percent of Pennsylvania’s bridges are structurally deficient—the highest rate in the nation. The seven-county Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area is no exception with nearly one in five bridges deemed structurally deficient.
And nearly half of the roads in the Pittsburgh MSA are in mediocre or poor condition, according to the federal data. As high as that rate is, it’s lower than the national average and lower than the average rate of poor or mediocre roads found among Pittsburgh Today benchmark regions.
Those bumps prove costly to the region’s motorists, who spend an estimated $432 a year in repairs and maintenance due to poor road conditions.
Questions or corrections? Contact us at pittsburghtoday@gmail.com.
