U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Gov. Kathy Hochul were in the Capital Region Thursday to announce funding safety and reliability improvements to the Castleton-on-Hudson bridge, where the New York state Thruway crosses the Hudson River, connecting Albany and Schenectady counties.

The bridge is one of nine sets of key bridges across the country to get this kind of funding. About $21 million will go to a new eastbound bridge deck, a crash-tested railing for safety and better drainage to avoid hydroplaning. That’s in addition to an ongoing construction project to replace the westbound bridge deck.

“If you look at that bridge, it represents the very latest engineering and construction ingenuity available in the 1950s. But today, it takes near monthly repairs just to keep it in service,” Buttigieg said.

The bridge in question was built in 1959, and about 17,000 travelers cross it every day.

“Together, these projects are set to extend the useful life of this bridge by another 50 years, meaning that our children and grandchildren will one day have a chance to take advantage of it too,” Buttigieg said.

The secretary was joined by Hochul, as well as U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko.

“One thing that’s so important is to make sure this state has 21st century infrastructure,” Hochul said.