Pittsburgh has become a fast-growing hub for many technology and robotics companies, and leaders across the region and state are hoping that expands even more.

At the opening night of the Aviation & Robotics Summit in Pittsburgh’s Strip District on Tuesday, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro heralded the growth of the industry and said the region should build on that progress.

He cited the success of Astrobotic, a North Side company that is planning to send equipment to the moon as part of the first lunar mission the U.S. has carried out since the Apollo missions of the 1970s.

Pennsylvania this month opted into the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program, part of the federal Inflation Reduction Act, which provides funding to state and local governments to develop climate action plans and makes them eligible for grants from the $4.6 billion pool established by the act and administered by the Environmental Protection Agency.

LVPC Executive Director Becky Bradley said the money will be used to complete work on the Regional Climate Action Plan. Items in the plan include a regional green infrastructure program supporting clean water, flood mitigation, installation of air quality monitoring systems, electric vehicle charging stations, as well as advancing walking and biking.

The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission received $1 million in federal funding to continue its work developing a comprehensive climate action plan for the region, the state announced Friday.

The commission will work with Pennsylvania to update existing climate, energy, or sustainability plans, or to develop new plans, according to details about the grant published on the state’s website.

Construction on Pittsburgh’s Charles Anderson Memorial Bridge project could begin as early as spring 2024, city officials said Monday.

The most recent project update indicates the design phase for the bridge should be completed by the end of this year. Construction is “anticipated to begin” next spring and is expected to take two construction seasons.

The bridge was closed in early February, after inspections showed the need for immediate repairs to the 85-year old steel deck truss bridge. The bridge carries the four-lane Boulevard of the Allies over a pedestrian trail and connects Central Oakland and South Oakland with Schenley Park.

The federal government is giving Pennsylvania a down payment to plan how to best adapt to and mitigate climate change locally.

In Harrisburg on Friday, state and federal officials said Pennsylvania will get about $6 million to create priority climate action plans.

The commonwealth will receive up to a $3 million Climate Pollution Reduction Grant through the program set up by the Inflation Reduction Act. The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission, and the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission will each also get a grant of up to $1 million.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Acting Secretary Rich Negrin joined Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 3 Administrator Adam Ortiz, PENNVEST Chairman Dr. Brian Regli, and local government partners to celebrate Earth Month and highlight the partnership between federal, state, and local governments to fight climate change.

Pennsylvania opted into the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program, part of the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The program provides grants to state and local government entities to develop climate action plans and makes them eligible for grants from the $4.6 billion pool established by the IRA and administered by the EPA.

Pennsylvania is getting a boost in the fight against climate change with some extra funding.

On Friday, state officials came together to celebrate Earth Month and highlight federal, state and local governments’ partnership to fight climate change, according to a release.

“All climate change is local. It is an all of the above problem and needs an all of the above solution, and it is so important to have strong partners at the federal and local level all committing to fight climate change alongside us,” said Rich Negrin, acting secretary for the Department of Environmental Protection.

Pennsylvania opted into the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program, part of the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), earlier in April.

It certainly would be no mere play on words to say one particular matter in East Franklin Township hits close to home for Larry Richardson.

An ongoing sense of urgency expressed by many to make safer the State Route 422/Glade Run Road intersection in the municipality is understood and appreciated more than most by people such as Richardson, the municipality’s zoning officer, who resides not far from the junction that counts at least one traffic-related fatality in recent years.

The New Castle Area Transit Authority will be looking to better market itself and its services over the next couple of years.

The Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission presented the marketing plan for the authority for fiscal years 2022-2025 during the authority’s board meeting in March. The SPC helped work on the plan with the authority.

The marketing plan is part of the implementation of the PennDOT Act 44 performance review action plan originally outlined in the NCATA performance system review report of 2018.

The authority will work to market to commuters who ride between three and five days a week, workers, students in high school and college, senior citizens and people with disabilities, as well as tourists.

Brackenridge Councilman Dino Lopreiato said a new half-mile walking trail through the borough will do more than create recreational opportunities.

“It will showcase some of the nicest river views in Western Pennsylvania,” he said.

“People will be able to walk or ride a bike, and, hopefully, it will encourage residents to get out and enjoy our beautiful park.”

Work kicked off this week on the trail segment, which is part of the larger, 33-mile Three Rivers Heritage Trail operated by the nonprofit Friends of the Riverfront.

The $445,000 project is nearly seven years in the making.