PennDOT warns drivers to slow down going into new I-79 traffic pattern
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Less than two days into a new traffic pattern on Interstate 79 and already there have been at least three accidents.
The issue is a new split of the driving lanes southbound between the Parkway North and the Neville Island Bridge.
Over the weekend, the contractor moved in and activated the crossover for southbound I-79, a couple miles south of 279.
At the split you have to choose - the left lane is an express lane, and the right lane is the local lane that will allow you to exit at Mt. Nebo and Emsworth Sewickley.
The express lane crosses over and uses the northbound pavement. All of this is needed for bridge rehabilitation which is not a quick process.
"The bridge decks will take all spring and summer and some of fall to get done, and then there's also paving that gets done this year," Jason Zang, of PennDOT, said.
Drivers will want to slow down going into the split, Zang said. It comes as you are in a lefthand curve and the entrance to the express lane feels very narrow. A driver not paying attention could easily pinball off the sides.
PennDOT did not spare the sign shop on this one. There are plenty of warnings that the split is coming.
"People will have to pay attention and slow down and just be alert," Zang said.
So, use the right lane if you're heading for Mt. Nebo Road or the Emsworth Sewickley exits.
The primary reason for the crossover is to do bridge deck replacements, Zang said.
"If everything goes great, we'll have the crossover out of there by mid-October," he said.
Northbound drivers will still have two lanes with a southbound lane going by on the other side of a jersey barrier.