BIG BEAVER, Pa. — Double shifts, six days a week, construction is happening over the Beaver River. It comes as the old bridge is aging and the PA Turnpike is giving drivers a new view.
“This is where you can start to see that T shape with the superstructure coming out, and then it will come across, and we will do the same thing here, and we will actually connect it here in the middle,” said PA Turnpike Senior Engineer and Project Manager Josh Farley.
Farley walked Channel 11 through the muddy construction site to showcase the $290 million project. The Turnpike is roughly 55% complete with this new bridge that will expand travel to six lanes and hopefully see drivers in late 2026.
“Concrete bridges like we are building now are much more manageable with much less maintenance over the long term,” Farley said.
But like most things, Mother Nature is playing a factor in the project as water levels rise on the river and the current kicks up.
“It’s really accessibility, and then when the water is up, we can’t get out to the work area, and it sweeps down a ton of debris,” Farley said.
Outside the bridge, the Turnpike will also create a new interchange coming off I-76 into Big Beaver.
“The northern corridor in Beaver County hasn’t seen much development in many years, but we are starting to see development going into Lawrence County, and we want to make sure that continues in Beaver County. It’s almost the forgotten corner for many years,” said Beaver County Commissioner Daniel Camp.
That interchange will now face tolls, but will be more friendly to large commercial vehicles, potentially bringing new business to this area.
“Now we are having more companies looking into that area, and when it comes to economic development, that will ultimately bring jobs and good family-paying jobs here in Beaver County,” Camp said.
The project is expected to open to drivers on one side in late 2026 and in both directions of travel in early 2027. At that point, the old bridge will be demolished in Summer 2027.
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