The City of Mount Vernon, alongside members of the community, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to reopen both MTA bridges Friday morning.

The South Street Bridge and the Fulton Street Bridge were closed in 2022 for vehicular traffic, "due to unsafe conditions for residents and infrastructure concerns."

In 2023, both bridges completely closed to pedestrian traffic and to "ensure public safety."

Members of the community gathered to discuss the efficiency and safety that the new bridges will bring, once again, allowing people to commute without having to detour.

First responders at the event were excited with the reopening.

“For the last couple of years, police department vehicles, fire vehicles, emergency service has had to go around to get to calls, so this is definitely going to increase our response time," said Chief Marcel Olifiers, with the Mount Vernon Police Department.

Business owners near the Fulton Street Bridge were also excited to see cars finally flowing freely.

One business owner, who declined to comment on camera, says he lost the majority of his long-time clients who reside over the bridge.

Halim Sharif, a business owner with Bubbles Laundry, also said he lost clientele.

"A lot of customers who would walk here obviously couldn't walk, nor could they drive," said Sharif. "So therefore, I did lose maybe 50% of my business."

Sharif says he hopes that more businesses will flourish, and that some of his former customers will return.

According to the City of Mount Vernon, this will be the first time in over three decades that all of the MTA bridges will be open for pedestrians and vehicle traffic.