PennDOT Releases List Of 2016 Road Work Projects In Allegheny Co.
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Spring is just around the corner, which means road construction is also on the way.
On Wednesday, PennDOT announced an extensive list of road construction projects in Allegheny County for 2016.
"There's going to be construction going in and out of the city," says PennDOT's Dan Cessna.
PennDOT's District 11 will be investing an estimated $189 million on 59 projects.
On tap for this year is the rehabilitation of 36 bridges in Allegheny County and the paving or resurfacing of about 60.5 miles of roadways.
Some of the new projects slated to begin this year include the following:
Route 19 Banksville Road Slide
Slide repair work adjacent to Banksville Road (Route 19) near I-376 in the City of Pittsburgh will occur in 2016. Box culvert installation is anticipated to begin in mid-May and will close Banksville Avenue and temporarily restrict a single-lane of traffic on southbound Banksville Road. Work impacting traffic is expected to be complete in late October with the overall project being completed in April 2017.
Route 65 - Fort Duquesne Bridge to McKees Rocks Bridge
Work on this estimated $20-30 million project will occur between the McKees Rocks and Fort Duquesne Bridges in the City of Pittsburgh. The two construction season project is anticipated to begin in May. This year will work will be focused on the southbound direction. Work will consist of concrete patching, an asphalt overlay, bridge rehabilitation, drainage and guiderail updates, signage, retaining wall repairs and pavement marking installation. Long-term, single-lane closures and nightly and weekend ramp closures will occur. Two lanes of traffic in each direction will be maintained between the Fort Duquesne and West End Bridges. A single lane will remain open in each direction between the McKees Rocks and West End Bridges.
I-376 Airport
Weekend lane restrictions have begun on the $66.34 million I-376 project located from the McClaren Road interchange to approximately ½ mile into Beaver County. Concrete reconstruction and rehabilitation, joint repairs, bridge deck overlays and guiderail and drainage improvements will occur on 7.5 miles of I-376. Two lanes of traffic in each direction will be maintained on I-376. Temporary crossovers will occur. One lane of crossed over traffic will be utilized as an "express" lane which will by-pass all exits. The other lane will be the "local" lane which will allow access to the airport and other exits. Additional work includes the replacement of the Economy Road Bridge over I-376. The project is anticipated to conclude in November 2017.
Glenwood Interchange Phase 3
Work began in late February on the $16.95 million third phase of improvements at the Glenwood interchange. 2016 work includes bridge deck replacement of northbound Route 837 and four associated ramps at the interchange. Northbound Route 837 traffic is being crossed over into the southbound lanes approaching the interchange. A single-lane of traffic will be maintained in each direction in the southbound lanes. A temporary roadway and traffic signal have been installed to allow Routes 837 and 885 to intersect. Three of the four closed ramps will utilize the new intersection. The fourth ramp (northbound Route 837 to northbound Route 837 East Carson Street) has a short detour. Work will continue through November. After a winter hiatus, work will restart in February 2017.
There are also several projects that are continuing from 2015 that require some more work this year:
Route 60 Steubenville Pike
This $9 million project to improve Route 60 (Steubenville Pike) and Route 22/30 began in March 2014. The project included milling and resurfacing on Route 60 and Route 22/30, repairs to the Route 22/30 bridge over McKee Road, repairs to the Old Steubenville Pike bridge over Route 22/30, emergency repairs to the Route 22/30 bridge over I-376, traffic signal repairs and ADA curb cut ramp installation. Anticipated to be completed in May 2016, remaining work includes final pavement marking installation and joint sealing.
I-376 Parkway West Improvement Project
Work began in August 2014 on the $72.83 million project to improve I-376 (Parkway West) between the Fort Pitt Tunnel and I-79. Completed work includes deck replacement of three bridges at the Carnegie Interchange, milling and resurfacing, median barrier replacement and shoulder reconstruction. Other finished improvements include bridge preservation work, guiderail installation, drainage improvements, repairs to retaining walls and existing sign structures, new pavement markings and sign updates. A weekend closure in 2016 will be required to finish paving, install message boards and complete sign structure work. Bridge painting will also occur this year with minimal impacts to traffic. The project will conclude in August 2016.
Fort Pitt Tunnel Ceiling Removal
Four weekend closures (two in each direction) remain on the $14.17 million Fort Pitt Tunnel Ceiling Removal Project. Completed work on the project includes tunnel ceiling removal, concrete repairs to the tunnel walls, waterline and standpipe improvements, electrical updates, drainage upgrades and reroofing of the north portal building. In 2016, beam flange painting and paving operations will require the weekend closures which will occur in April and May. Additionally, overnight closures will occur as crews install composite drains, water and fire suppression lines and cross passage doors. Work is anticipated to finish in late May 2016.
Hulton Bridge
The new Hulton Bridge was opened to traffic in October 2015. Work began in 2013 on the $64.8 million project to replace the 108 year old, structurally deficient bridge. The new four lane bridge carries Route 2082 over the Allegheny River between Freeport Road (Route 1001) in Harmar Township and Allegheny River Boulevard (Route 2073) in Oakmont Borough. An eastbound single-lane restriction will remain in place as wing wall work and roadway reconstruction are completed. The project will conclude prior to the 2016 US Open scheduled for June 13-19 at the Oakmont Country Club.
Liberty Bridge & Tunnel
The granddaddy of the summer projects is rebuilding the Liberty Bridge. It'll be a lot of steel work and all the concrete.
Lane closures are not an option, so look for the bridge to be two lanes inbound and one outbound in the morning, and two outbound and one inbound in the afternoon.
"The Boulevard of the Allies ramp will be closed during this first phase of construction, and we expect that to continue for the build of the 2016 construction season," says Cessna.
Coming out of the South Hills, it's important to know that from The Point to West Homestead, there are seven traffic bridges. Four are going to be under construction - Liberty, 10th Street, Birmingham and Glenwood all with lane closures.
"That's the challenge with aging infrastructure, things have been left go, we're finally able to catch up on these projects and they can't wait, Cessna said.
Add to this another project on the other end of the Liberty Tunnel. The interchange right outside the tunnel is getting rehabbed and it means detouring 11,000 northbound 51 drivers from the bridge during the work.
"We will be pulling northbound traffic off and running them through the intersection so there will be a significant impact," said Cessna.
In other words, all the traffic will come down the ramp to West Liberty and the tunnel - that's double the number.
"We do expect fewer people will be traveling that direction due to the restrictions," said Cessna.
That work will start in early June.
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