Pontoosuc Ave. Bridge Project Meeting Set

02:40PM / Friday, December 27, 2024Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The state Department of Transportation will hold a virtual information meeting on the proposed replacement of the Pontoosuc Avenue bridge.

The new 65-foot span over the West Branch of the Housatonic River near the intersection with Wahconah Street will include complete bridge reconstruction and Americans with Disabilities Act compliant upgrades to the pedestrian facilities. The total length of the project along the roadway is approximately 455 linear feet and will include the addition of a 5-foot shoulder bike lane, reconstruction of the sidewalk and new pavement markings and signage.

This project is planned to be funded through the 2026 Transportation Improvement Program for the Berkshire Metropolitan Planning Organization at an estimated cost of $7.7 million.

Construction is expected to begin in fall 2026.

The bridge will be closed to all modes of transportation during construction. There is no potential for a temporary vehicular or pedestrian bridge given the site characteristics and adjacent properties. Vehicle and pedestrian detours are required to provide adequate accessibility accommodation.

A secure right-of-way is necessary for this project. Acquisitions in fee and permanent or temporary easements may be required. The city is responsible for acquiring all needed rights in private or public lands. MassDOT's policy concerning land acquisitions will be presented at the hearing.

Reasonable accommodations and/or language assistance is free of charge upon request (e.g interpreters in American Sign Language and languages other than English, live captioning, videos, assistive listening devices and alternate material formats), as available.

For accommodation or language assistance, the chief diversity and civil rights officer at 1-857-368-8580, TTD/TTY at 1-857-266-0603, fax 1-857-368-0602 or at MassDOT.CivilRights@dot.state.ma.us. Requests should be made as soon as possible and prior to the meeting, and for more difficult to arrange services including sign-language, CART or language translation or interpretation, requests should be made at least 10 business days before the meeting.

More information here.

Tags: bridge project, information session, MassDOT,

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Pittsfield Wants People to Know Where Free Public Wifi Is

By Brittany PolitoiBerkhshires Staff
04:46AM / Friday, September 18, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The city wants it to be clear where people can connect to free public wifi— which expands beyond downtown.

On Tuesday, the Parks Commission approved "Free Wifi" signage at The Common, Riverway Park, and Durant Park. Community members can access the internet without charge in these locations, as well as in downtown areas.

Two years ago, Pittsfield received a $99,972 Digital Equity Implementation Grant from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. This allowed the city to take a comprehensive look at digital equity and determine where to focus attention.

"That was a lengthy process that we worked on, and there was a lot of public input. We did some surveying. We met with a lot of focus groups; [Berkshire Regional Planning Commission] was the group that spearheaded that for us, and one of the things that came up was the lack of accessible wifi," Director of Community Development Justine Dodds reported. "Particularly in the westside."

Throughout this process, residents also wanted to see connectivity at the nearby Westside Riverway Park.

In 2023, Pittsfield was selected to participate in the Municipal Digital Equity Planning Program launched by the state and MBI, focused on ensuring residents can use the internet to conduct day-to-day activities. A digital equity plan also qualifies Pittsfield for additional grant funding.

Around 16,000 city households qualified for the Federal Communications Commission's affordable internet program that ended in 2024.

Dodds said adding Wi-FI and signage to Durant and Riverway Parks is a small piece of the larger digital equity project. Signage is already downtown, and the city plans to hire the same designer for the expanded wayfinding so it is cohesive.

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