Watch CBS News

President Biden to fly over I-95 collapse site in Philadelphia

Rebuilding I-95: Demolition complete, Crews start temporary roadway construction
Rebuilding I-95: Demolition complete, Crews start temporary roadway construction 02:26

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Work to repair the I-95 collapse in Philadelphia continues around the clock, with a livestream up and running where you can track the progress.

The workers are so busy they don't even have time to meet with the president.

Saturday afternoon, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will be at the Pennsylvania Convention Center for a rally to kick off their 2024 reelection campaign. While in town. Biden will fly over the collapse site and see the construction happening.

"He wanted to meet some people that worked on the work site, and we said we can't spare them," said Ryan Boyer, business manager of the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council. "We love the President of the United States, but we need to get this bridge done."

Demolition of the remaining lanes was completed ahead of schedule this week.

Crews have begun work on building the temporary roadway using a base of foamed recycled glass aggregate made in Delaware County to serve as the foundation. Shipments of the materials, made from recycled glass bottles and jars, arrived at the site Thursday. 

Crews will then fill the gap up to the surface level of I-95. 

"They're putting the fill in, and once they get the fill done, then we'll pave it, put some asphalt on it, paint the lines, and it'll all be done as fast as possible," Boyer said.

Once the temporary bridge is done, crews will start building the lanes of a permanent roadway from the outside in.

"The job site, it's been nonstop," Boyer said. "When we said 24 hours, 7 days a week, that's what we meant."

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.