Look around this region while driving on a highway or crossing a bridge, watching a rail car deliver freight, or seeing an airplane take off with passengers from Montoursville to Dulles International near Washington, D.C.

Or, whenever looking at a mural, painting or sculpture made by the artists belonging to the Lycoming Arts and its subcommittee, Public ARTWORKS, which add to downtown Williamsport’s aesthetic.

Now, consider that someone had to plan for and advocate for funding these massive improvements in the region’s highways, bridges, airport and the downtown’s unique and creative appeal.

For many in Lycoming County, that someone was Mark R. Murawski, who passed away in early June at home at age 63.

For all who recognize his name in this Commonwealth, Murawski will forever be considered a giant in all things transportation related.

“A cornerstone in the Lycoming County Planning Department over three decades,” said county Commissioner Scott Metzger of his friend and colleague.

“He was so instrumental in so many different projects that made this county a better community, ranging from the airport, riverwalk, and the bridge bundling program,” Metzger said.

Bridge bundling, for example, is an innovative procurement strategy that Murawski seized upon.

It is a method of taking multiple structurally deficient bridges and grouping them into a single contract for design and construction. An approach that saves up to 50% on design costs and up to 15% on construction expenses by leveraging economies of scale and streamlining the delivery process.

Motorists and pedestrians can feel safer traveling, walking and biking over these bridges.

During his career as Lycoming County Transportation Planner and Supervisor, Murawski worked closely with many municipalities and with the officials at the state Department of Transportation (PennDOT) District 3-0 in Montoursville to rehabilitate or replace numerous bridges in the region.

He was instrumental in establishing the first countywide Small Bridge Inspection Program in the Commonwealth and later in his tenure, he was considered the “architect” for Lycoming County’s Bridge Bundling Program.

In that way he led the plan to group multiple bridges under one construction contract and leverage a unique funding strategy through a PennDOT PIB loan – that was paid back through a $5 surcharge on annual vehicle registration fees.

This program of bundling was also the first of its kind in the Commonwealth and has served as a model for other counties because of the significant cost and time savings realized.

“We have lost that voice in Harrisburg for Lycoming County because his work and influence across the state was instrumental,” Metzger said.

“He was highly respected by all his colleagues across the state,” Metzger said.

Bridge bundling would not have happened without his guidance and assistance,” he added. The river walk would not be where it is today.

Today, other counties model Lycoming County’s bridge bundling program because they see how successful it’s been in ensuring this county’s bridges are completed and that needed work is done on them, Metzger observed.

“His professionalism, expertise, sense of humor and kindness will be sorely missed by all who knew him,” Metzger said.

Besides the bridge-bundling, Murawski participated in the coordination of many other bridge projects ranging from rural covered bridges to the Market Street Bridge reconstruction.

The Market Street Bridge reconstruction, between Williamsport and South Williamsport, including the replacement of the older bridge was pivotal to the project of which he was most proud — the Susquehanna River Walk.

In his 32 years with the Lycoming County Planning Department, Murawski retired in 2018, but he continued to maintain an office and contribute his expertise to regional and state transportation planning initiatives.

He was former president of the Route 15 Coalition, a regional advocacy group that successfully lobbied for the modernization and four-lane expansion of the U.S. Route 15 corridor in this region.

This coalition work resulted in the addition of the scenic Route 15 Tioga County Welcome Center, the construction of the Central Susquehanna Valley Thruway (the bypass around Shamokin Dam bottleneck, which is scheduled for completion in 2028), and laying the groundwork for federal designation of the I-99 Corridor, with anticipated completion in 2030.

For decades, he led the efforts of the Williamsport Area Transportation Study Metropolitan Planning Organization (WATS MPO) and was the primary author of the 2013-2033 WATS/Lycoming County Long-Range Transportation Plan, outlining a comprehensive two-decade multimodal vision for roads, bridges, rail freight, transit, air service, and pedestrian trails/bikeways throughout the county.

Multifaceted

An avid runner since high school, Murawski could be found many mornings on the river walk, and he was always gratified to see others in the community enjoying the river walk, too. Many local planners whom Murawski mentored continue to oversee the river walk extension, with plans to connect to Pine Creek Trail and eventually become a leg of the Genesee-Susquehanna Greenway, which will run from Lake Ontario into Maryland.

“I can attribute any and all success that I’ve had as a planner to the guidance and mentorship of Mark Murawski ” said Scott Williams, former county transportation planner who now works in the city department of community and economic development and planning, much of his daily workload centered on improving the lives of those living, working and recreating in the city.

“Mark taught me the value of never being satisfied with just having a plan, but instead to focus on the next step: implementing projects that improve the lives of the people we serve,” Williams said. “He would often say that it’s fine to be a planning department but better to be a ‘doing’ department.”

Known and respected statewide and still active after retirement on two statewide transportation advisory committees and the River Valley Transit Authority board, over his career he completed dozens of major projects, any one of which would be the pinnacle of other careers.

Murawski cared about improving all forms of travel.

“Mark will be sorely missed not only by those who knew him,” said William Martin, with whom he served on the Williamsport Regional Airport Authority, the board that plans improvements and works with legislators to secure funding sources for the airport.

Murawski was chairman of the Williamsport Regional Airport Authority for 10 years and a board member for 12 years. During his tenure, the runway was extended to accommodate larger aircraft, and the seeds were sown for the replacement of the terminal building.

“He will be missed in the community,” Martin said.

A funding conduit

Murawski’s advocacy and familiarity with state and federal government policy helped to garner hundreds of millions of dollars in state and federal funding to Lycoming County.

His intimate knowledge of transportation planning was so deep that he was able to provide assistance and guidance on how to develop and deliver meaningful projects efficiently.

“It’s impossible to truly convey the depth of the loss our community has suffered,” Williams remarked.

“What I can convey is that I had the extreme good fortune to learn the practice of planning from the best transportation planner in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” he said.

Murawski served on the PA Wilds Planning Team Trail Committee and as Lycoming County Planning representative on the Pine Creek Rail Trail Advisory Committee. For his outstanding leadership in trail development, he received the “Champion of the PA Wilds” award in 2015.

Even after official retirement, Murawski remained very active in transportation planning both locally and across the Commonwealth.

In 2025, he was appointed to the River Valley Transit Authority (RVTA) Board of Directors. At the state level, he continued to serve as the vice chair of the state Transportation Advisory Committee and vice chair and secretary of the state Aviation Advisory Committee, both of which provide guidance to PennDOT’s Secretary of Transportation.