Baltimore is taking initial steps to makeover the corridor that connects some South Baltimore neighborhoods to the rest of the city — but it will be years before the project, which includes rehabilitating or replacing the Hanover Street Bridge, could become reality.

Maryland lawmakers announced a $15.5 million federal grant last month to begin planning to revitalize the Hanover Street Corridor, a 2.4-mile stretch that includes the 108-year-old drawbridge over the Patapsco River that connects Cherry Hill to Port Covington.

While the bridge makes up less than a half-mile of the corridor, it represents the main connection between South Baltimore residents and the city’s core. It’s a major throughline of traffic: Over 40,000 cars use the bridge each weekday, according to Maryland Department of Transportation data. And its role as a crucial artery only increased after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed in March and the city rerouted truck traffic across the Hanover Street Bridge.

The federal funds will be used to plan improvements along the corridor, including sidewalks, new bike lanes and better connections to waterfront parks and trails. Planning will take four years, a Baltimore Department of Transportation spokesperson said, and then construction could kick off.

Government officials and neighborhood advocates talked for years about revitalizing or replacing the Hanover Street Bridge, officially the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge. A 2018 study funded by both the federal government and the city recommended a $50 million project to make structural improvements to the bridge and decrease the number of lanes from five to four. This would allow for more space for pedestrians and cyclists on each side of the bridge.

The bridge currently had five lanes for cars. Each side of the bridge has a narrow sidewalk, riddled with dents and cracks, making it difficult for wheelchairs and bicycles to cross. No barriers separate pedestrians from fast-moving traffic.

“It is physically difficult for someone across the water to access those new amenities and opportunities if they don’t have a car,” said Brad Rogers, the executive director of the South Baltimore Gateway Partnership. “So redesigning and rebuilding the bridge so that it has ample pedestrian infrastructure ensures that people on one side of the water aren’t physically divided from opportunities across the water.”

The city resurfaced the bridge in 2018 as a stopgap measure to deal with its numerous fissures and potholes, but the bridge has not seen significant work since then.

Reimagine Middle Branch, an ambitious $175 million plan to redevelop neighborhoods along the 11-mile Middle Branch shoreline of the Patapsco River, endorsed the 2018 study’s recommendations with a slight modification: moving the pedestrian and bicycle lanes all to one side.

While the 2018 study looked into a shorter stretch of Hanover Street, the new federal funds aim to revitalize a larger stretch from I-95 to Brooklyn and the Anne Arundel County line. The DOT looked at a larger corridor this time around to ensure that South Baltimore residents on either side of the river can access jobs and resources in other neighborhoods.

How the city will pay for the project is still up in the air. The city would use a mix of state and federal funding, according to Baltimore DOT. The money Baltimore receives from the state to maintain roads and bridges is under threat after state budget shortfalls. The department did not provide a dollar figure for how much the project might cost.

The planning money comes from a U.S. Department of Transportation initiative for infrastructure projects around the country. This year’s package of grants also includes nearly $5 million to redesign streets around the Reisterstown Plaza Metro Station.

Meleny Thomas, who directs the South Baltimore Community Land Trust, described the entire corridor as “a pivotal point in the community” that’s in desperate need of repair.

She’s excited that it could finally get the facelift it needs, even if it’s few years away. Her one concern is what happens to all those cars during construction, especially if the bridge has to close completely.

“The only thing I’m worried about is what the transition will look like,” Thomas said. “But we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”