Panther Hollow Bridge work expected to pick up after more than a year of closures

For more than a year, drivers have had to find an alternate route as the Panther Hollow Bridge remains closed, but on Thursday, some promising news made it seem as if it will reopen earlier than expected. 

October 2024 was the last time drivers were able to cross the bridge before the city had to shut it down, but now there appears to be some progress. 

"It's really important to keep them [bridges] in good shape, keep them safe for the public," said City of Pittsburgh's Department of Infrastructure and Mobility's Chief Engineer Eric Setzler.

Crews are now actively preparing the bridge for the next stage of repairs, and that work is expected to begin in the next couple of weeks, and it will continue into the late summer. 

"I'm glad they're monitoring and fixing them, but it's an inconvenience, and when I moved to Greenfield was when the Greenfield [Bridge] was closed," said Ron Ripper. "So, it finally opened, and they closed these two, so it takes a little more time." 

The Panther Hollow Bridge closure is also clashing with the Charles Anderson Bridge closure, taking out two key bridges for Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood. 

"I think having that one open as soon as possible will alleviate some of the stress we're seeing with the Charles Anderson Bridge being closed, but also the connectivity to the park," Mayor Corey O'Connor said. 

Vehicle detours will remain in place for the foreseeable future, but when it comes to those on bikes and walking or running, there is some relief coming. 

"We intend to keep it open for bikes across the bridge, there could be some short-term closures if something is going on, but generally speaking, it will be open," Setzler said. 

While this won't help those commuting, the bridge is expected to temporarily reopen in July for the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix, and then after that, there will be some rolling closures into August when the project is expected to be completed.