A major bridge connecting the cities of Chicopee and Holyoke in western Massachusetts has reopened after a reconstruction that took a year longer than planned.
Small business owners on either side of the Willimansett Bridge are rejoicing.
Norma Berrios, who manages a pawn shop just off the bridge in Chicopee, estimated business was down by 50 percent during the four years the steel truss bridge over the Connecticut River was closed to traffic.
"It was tough. I hope we get our customers back. It will be nice to see traffic going back and forth again," she said.
The original contractor on the project went bankrupt which caused work to be suspended for nine months until MassDOT hired a new company to finish the job.
The new contract increased the cost of the project by $ 3 million to a total of $21 million.
The owner of a pizza place on the Holyoke side of the bridge through a party Thursday for the politicians and others who attended an event to mark the opening of the bridge to vehicular traffic.
