PITTSFIELD -- Traffic can flow again on the Pecks Road bridge -- and Neeta Patel at Nichols Package Store hopes customer flow will follow.
Since the state-mandated closure of the problematic bridge nearly 10 months ago, Patel said the store -- just off of Pecks Road on Wahconah Street -- has "lost so many customers."
But now that the bridge is back, so is Patel's optimism.
"[I'm] very excited," Patel said. "Hopefully we can make more business, attract more people."
Central Berkshires A new Pecks Road bridge is expected to arrive next month. Three other city bridges are still awaiting designs, grants By Greg Sukiennik, The Berkshire Eagle 3 min to read
Patel also hopes the reopening will also draw new businesses to the neighborhood.
The $1,689,000 project -- partially funded by a $500,000 state small bridges grant -- has been a long time coming.
In 2019, the state deemed the bridge "structurally deficient" and in "poor" condition after an inspection found heavy rust, cracks, bent parts and loss of steel sections from its beams.
The state sought to close the bridge, which crosses Onota Brook, but the city was allowed to keep it open if it narrowed it down to one 10-foot-wide lane with a signal to direct alternating traffic. In the meantime, the city worked on designs to reconstruct the bridge and began the bid process in summer 2024, said Ricardo Morales, commissioner of public services and utilities.
The city intended to replace the bridge last summer with the single-lane configuration, but a state inspection in July deemed the span unstable, throwing a wrench in the plan.
"And so at that point we said, 'Well, if it has to be closed down, then we might as well do the work with the full closure,' " Morales said.
Local News Pecks Road bridge closed 'until further notice' after state inspection finds more deterioration By Heather Bellow, The Berkshire Eagle 1 min to read
With a detour using Onota Street, Vin Hebert Boulevard and Valentine Road set in place, Rifenburg Construction of Troy, N.Y., got to work, and the bridge was demolished in September 2024.
The bridge was replaced with a precast concrete structure delivered in February, then installed and paved over by crews.
Although the bridge was initially slated to reopen by early March, weather delays pushed back the final paving and curbing work, which was completed Monday.
"I'm relieved," Morales said. "It's been a long process."
On Tuesday, crews put the finishing touches on the bridge, including resetting some of the guardrails and moving poles out of the area. There are temporary tape markings on the road as the city waits for warmer temperatures to apply the final paint, Morales said.
The bridge reopening also was welcome news for Paige Rosier at Berkshire Graphics on Wahconah Street, as the detour has made equipment deliveries and service calls more time-consuming.
"I think [the reopening] is great," Rosier said. "It'll save some travel cost, especially [for] people who come in to buy their [supplies]. ... Any improvement to the city is wonderful."