The lilac-colored, traffic-choked Hulton Bridge linking Oakmont and Harmar will be around for at least five more years.

But the public got a preview of a freer-flowing future last week as the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation unveiled proposed designs for a new $75 million, four-lane span to cross the Allegheny River connecting Freeport and Hulton roads.

"The existing bridge is safe as it stands. But it's a tired bridge that needs a life extension or a replacement," PennDOT District 11 Executive Dan Cessna told about 100 residents at an informational meeting.

Under the best circumstances, construction would begin in 2012 and take two years.

The new bridge likely won't be purple. PennDOT, which caused a small stir when it painted the existing span "tint of lilac" in 1991, is asking for residents' opinions of five less-exotic color schemes: green, tan, gray, silver-blue and a sandy color called parchment.

Residents also were asked to comment on the style of sidewalk railings, lighting fixtures and pier treatments to be used.

The existing steel truss bridge was built in 1908 and has two narrow lanes and no shoulders. It is used by 25,000 vehicles per day and frequently backs up during peak hours.

Rehabilitating it would extend its life 15 to 25 years but add no capacity, and the work would require a one-year shutdown and detours.

The nearest alternate river crossings, the Highland Park and New Kensington bridges, are six miles away, Mr. Cessna noted.

A new bridge would be built right next to the existing span and require no detours during construction, PennDOT said. It would have four lanes that are slightly wider than the existing bridge's, with 6-foot shoulders that could accommodate bicyclists.

A $1.7 million preliminary design prepared by Gannett Fleming Inc. shows two optional alignments -- one on either side of the current bridge.

PennDOT prefers the upstream alignment, which reduces the impact on Riverview Junior-Senior High School but puts the bridge within about 30 feet of a riverfront condominium complex on the other side of Hulton Road.

Mr. Cessna said funding for the project has not been identified but that PennDOT hopes to have it added to the region's Transportation Improvement Plan, which identifies the priority highway and transit projects for 10 counties in southwestern Pennsylvania, next year.

First Published: February 16, 2009, 5:00 a.m.