The City of Philadelphia on Friday celebrated the completion of the $20 million Martin Luther King Jr. Drive Bridge Rehabilitation Project with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the east side of the 700-foot bridge over the Schuylkill River.
The reopening coincides with the 30th year of seasonal weekend closures of MLK Drive, a program that began in 1995 to give pedestrians, cyclists, and other visitors safe access to 4.3 miles of green space along the river. The bridge and roadway will reopen to vehicles on Monday, Sept. 22, at 7 a.m.
“The completion of this project was vital and today, we’re celebrating the reopening of one of Philadelphia’s favorite bridges,” said Mayor Cherelle Parker on Friday. “Infrastructure projects – and there are many – strengthen our transportation network, create critical links for our communities, and offer new access to green spaces and economic opportunities.”
The updated bridge features three lanes for vehicles and a new 10.5-foot shared-use path that connects to the MLK Drive Trail. Work included demolishing the old deck, rehabilitating steel girders and piers, and constructing a new concrete deck, barriers, railings, and lighting. Nearby roadways also received upgrades such as new lighting, ADA curb ramps, and crosswalks.
Streets Commissioner Kristin Del Rossi praised the project team for completing the two-year effort on the 60-year-old structure. “This 700-foot-long bridge deck contains 158 tons of rebar and over 2,000 tons of concrete. All that mass carefully engineered and constructed to serve those traveling in Philadelphia for generations to come.”
The bridge, first opened in 1965 as the West River Drive Bridge, has long been a key link between West Philadelphia and Center City. Its location has served as a river crossing since the 1600s, when a ferry operated there before being replaced in 1812 by The Colossus, the longest single-span wooden bridge in the nation at the time.
