ST. MARYS — The community is invited to attend a public open house regarding the replacement of three bridges in Elk and Cameron counties as part of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Rapid Bridge Replacement Project.

The open house, slated from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Nov. 16 in the St. Marys Middle School auditorium at 977 S. St. Marys St. in St. Marys, will focus on important information, including the construction schedule and traffic changes that are planned to take effect while the bridges are being replaced.

The bridges to be discussed include the Brusselles Street (Route 120) bridge, spanning a branch of Elk Creek in St. Marys; the East Center Street bridge (U.S. Route 219), spanning Powers Run in Johnsonburg; and St. Marys/Emporium Road bridge (Route 120), spanning Big Run in Shippen Township.

Representatives from Plenary Walsh Keystone Partners will be available to discuss the bridge projects and answer questions. Construction plans will be on display for reference.

PennDOT officials said a letter announcing the start of construction will be mailed out two weeks in advance to all project stakeholders. Residents will be given the opportunity to sign-up as a project stakeholder the night of the open house.

The bridges are referred to as JV-48, JV-50 and JV-25. They are three of 558 bridges being replaced under the Rapid Bridge Replacement Project. JV references the joint-venture partnership between Walsh/Granite, which is leading construction for the entire project.

The bridge replacements are part of the Rapid Bridge Replacement Project, a public-private partnership between PennDOT and Plenary Walsh Keystone Partners, under which Plenary Walsh will finance, design, replace and maintain the bridges for 25 years. The public-private approach allows PennDOT to replace the bridges more quickly, while achieving significant savings and minimizing impact on motorists.