Story and Video by Michelle Baker
After rounds of community feedback, environmental impact reports and design details, officials on Tuesday broke ground on the Arlington Avenue Bridge replacement project.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg stopped in Reno as part of his “Summer of Construction” tour to join Nevada Democratic Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen and break ground on the Arlington Avenue Bridge replacement project. The $28.3 million project is being funded through a mix of federal funds and grants and a local fuel tax.
In 2021, the 117th Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, providing $1.2 trillion for transportation and infrastructure projects, as well as investments into clean energy, American manufacturing and broadband access.
“There are so many communities, like Reno, that have been seeking to do projects like this for a long time,” Secretary Buttigieg said. “This bridge has needed attention for decades. It’s not because people forgot; it’s because the funding wasn’t there.”
The bridges, located on Arlington Avenue, were constructed in the first half of the 20th century; the north bridge was originally constructed in 1921, and the south bridge was constructed in 1939.
Sens. Cortez Masto and Rosen helped secure $7 million in Department of Transportation (DOT) funding, allocated through the infrastructure legislation, to replace the two bridges.
“It’s not just going to make our transportation better, but it’s going to boost our local economy,” Sen. Rosen said.
The funding will replace the two Arlington Avenue bridges to adapt to modern times, in physical design and in addressing different modes of transportation. 
“The crosswalks and the bike lanes will make this corridor better for pedestrians, cyclists and people with disabilities,” Sparks Mayor Ed Lawson said. Lawson is also the chair of the Washoe Regional Transportation Commission, which is leading work on the project.
The $32 million project is being funded through multiple federal and local initiatives including $3.3 million in COVID relief funds, $2 million in Congressional Directive Funds, $7 million from a Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability & Equity (RAISE) Grant, $5.9 million in Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG) funds and $10.1 million in Local Fuel Tax from the RTC.
”We’re going to rebuild, we’re going to replace, we’re going to repair, and we’re going to just continue to invest in Nevada,” Rosen said.
RTC officials said they are working with the City of Reno, Nevada Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineering and the Carson-Truckee Water Conservancy District to complete the project. Actual construction is set to begin in May 2025.
More information on the project can be found at https://arlingtonbridges.com/.
