“Finally,” some residents are saying.

The Hokendauqua-North Catasauqua Bridge, under construction since late 2013, will be opened to traffic Nov. 24, a year later than the projected date.

An 11 a.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place on the Whitehall side of the bridge, after which the barricades will be removed.

Rick Molchany, Lehigh County director of general services, said the ceremony will not be elaborate. Invited are Lehigh County Executive Tom Muller; Whitehall Township Mayor Edward D. Hozza Jr.; North Catasauqua Mayor William Molchany; state Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-18th; state Rep. Dan McNeill, D-133rd; and state Rep. Julie Harhart, R-183rd.

The $21 million bridge, which spans the Lehigh River, includes design and engineering costs. HRI Inc. is the general contractor. The intercounty bridge links Lehigh and Northampton counties. The bulk of funding for the construction of the bridge came from the federal government, administered by PennDOT, which kept an eye on the project with Lehigh County.

Molchany said on Nov. 13, delays of the bridge opening were due to several factors, such as weather and having employees “working in the river.”

It was not the water so much that gave problems, but rather the limestone on the river bed, Molchany said.

“It was porous,” he said, noting there was a serious issue for the piers to be anchored.

Replacing the 1930s-era deteriorating steel grate bridge, the new concrete bridge is modern in every way. Unlike the old span, which had been constructed in a straight line from Hokendauqua to North Catasauqua, the new bridge has a gentle, sweeping curve to it.

The new bridge, with a sidewalk on the north side, not only replaces the main bridge but also two smaller ones on the Whitehall side. One is a former railroad bridge.

Darktown has also factored into the project. A new road now connects Front and Water streets in Darktown. Water Street was closed to traffic during the bridge construction project.

Plans for the new bridge got underway 10 years ago, Molchany said.

Motorists traveling in that area will now have no detours - at least for several months. Replacement of the Coplay-Northampton Bridge will begin next year, with traffic being rerouted to the new bridge during the two-year construction project.