Major Road Construction Project Begins On Route 65
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - A major construction project along the inbound side of Route 65 began Monday morning.
The $25 million project stretches from the McKees Rocks Bridge to the Fort Duquesne Bridge.
Starting this morning at 9 a.m., only one lane will be open from the McKees Rocks Bridge to the West End Bridge. This restriction will be in place through July.
"There are always congestion issues whenever we start a major project of this nature," PennDOT's Steve Cowan said.
There will be some restrictions in place from the West End Bridge to the Fort Duquesne Bridge, but the bulk of the work begins on Tuesday.
PennDOT plans to have two lanes open along that stretch through August, but they will be narrow.
"Right now the lanes are 12 [feet]. They'll be narrowed down to 10-and-a-half feet. So, motorists will need to adjust to the narrowing. We just ask that you use caution when driving through that area," Cowan said.
Some of the work being done includes concrete patching, bridge rehab and guide rail improvements.
The biggest headache might be a 75-day closure of a portion of inbound Route 65 near the Marshall Avenue/Beaver Avenue exit. That closure will happen sometime late summer or early fall with work wrapping up in November.
PennDOT will also do ramp work, including the north ramps, which could be problem for event-goers.
Once inbound work is complete, outbound Route 65 is up next.
"Right now, the northbound lanes are being used as part of the West Carson Street detour route. So, we don't want to see any work occur until that project is complete," Cowan said.
Work on the northbound side of the road is slated to begin in 2017.
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