PennDOT: Chestnut Street Closed At Front Street In Old City Due To Support Pier Damage

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - A call to police led to the closure of a bridge near Penn's Landing.

PennDOT says they have to speed up the process to repair a crack in a support column, first discovered months ago.

Someone called police on Wednesday about a cracked column of the Chestnut Street bridge, according to PennDOT spokesman Gene Blaum, but this is nothing new.

Blaum said an April inspection first revealed the crack and it was added to a list of bridge repair projects. He said it never posed a safety risk, but after engineers took a look at the column Wednesday, they decided to start fixing the problem about a week earlier than first planned.

The bridge goes over I-95 and Columbus Boulevard. Blaum said the damaged structure is east of Columbus, under the ramp that connects to Market Street, near the parking area at Penn's Landing.

PennDOT said crews will begin Thursday to put together a support structure where the column is. That will keep the bridge closed, Blaum explained, possibly through the weekend. Once that work is finished, traffic can get through but the overall repair project will continue for another few weeks.

The bridge is expected to remain open to pedestrians.