Soldiers and Sailors Bridge Project

County: Erie
State Route: 4034
Local Name: Bayfront Parkway
Project Type: Safety Improvement
Start Month: June 2021
End Month: May 2022
Last Updated: June 22, 2022

Work is underway on the construction of a new multi-use bridge to provide a connection between the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Home and the nearby Veterans Memorial Cemetery in the City of Erie, Erie County. 

The project includes the creation of a 123-foot concrete bridge that will provide access over the CSX railroad tracks for pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorists from the home to the cemetery and the nearby historical site. Currently, the crossing is at-grade. The bridge will allow for a safer crossing while also providing space for CSX to increase the number of tracks in the area to accommodate future railway car storage. 

The bridge will be constructed behind the East Third Street facility and will connect to preexisting roadways on both sides of the tracks. Once the bridge is complete, the current at-grade crossing will be closed.

The contractor is Chivers Construction Company of Fairview, PA. The contract cost is $2,701,947, which is to be paid entirely with federal funds.

The ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of the bridge was held in late May 2022. The bridge is open to vehicles, pedesestrians, and bicyclists.

The bridge is an ancillary project to the Bayfront Parkway Central Corridor Improvement Project, which is expected to get underway next year. Construction of the bridge will allow for the removal of a portion of railroad tracks that run parallel to the parkway near State Street and Holland Street to make way for the creation of the grade-separated intersection at State Street and a roundabout at Holland Street.

Construction of the bridge also supports the major focus of the Bayfront Parkway project, which is to provide safer access to pedestrians and bicyclists.