Helping drivers avoid traffic headaches as Parkway East project prepares to get underway
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- On Friday night, one lane and two ramps on the Parkway East will close for two weeks, causing potential headaches for drivers headed into Pittsburgh.
The planned project will take place in the heart of the busiest part of the inbound lanes of the Parkway East.
Not long after they exit the Squirrel Hill Tunnel, 45,000 drivers who pass through the area every day will all be pushed to the left lanes of the road.
"The rightmost lane will be closed. You'll have to transition. you have to taper over into the other two lanes so we'll have two lanes open," said Jason Zang, PennDOT's Asst. Dist. Executive of Construction.
Zang says the issue being worked on surrounds the Glenwood ramp that takes drivers down to Second Avenue.
"It's very short. It's dangerous and people are coming 55,60 miles an hour and have to slam on the brakes. So we're improving the safety of that," Zang said.
In order to do that, the Parkway's bridge over Bates Street needs to be wider.
"We're going to bring in precast deck panels, we're actually going to widen that bridge out so we can get a longer deceleration lane," Zang said.
A large crane is needed for the job, so the Glenwood ramp will close, the outbound ramp to the Parkway will close, and Bates Street will be closed, essentially from Second Avenue up to the Boulevard of the Allies in both directions.
Drivers who usually would use the Glenwood exit will have to take an alternate route. Zang suggests using the Grant Street exit and turning around downtown and heading back towards Oakland
The detour for that is to take the following steps:
- Exit the Parkway at Grant Street
- Make a right on First Avenue
- Make a left on B Street
- Make a right on Second Avenue towards Bates Street and Oakland
The detour for those who would use the outbound ramp to the Parkway from Bates Street is as follows:
- Take the Boulevard of the Allies inound
- Exit at Grant Street
- Take either the ramp to the Parkway or the Boulevard of the Allies, which also can connect to the Parkway
The around-the-clock closure of Bates Street and the outbound Parkway ramp will only be in effect through Wednesday, June 15th -- after that, it will shift to overnight work.
The rest of the ramps and lanes won't reopen until June 25.
All of these closures and this work will begin on Friday night at 9 p.m.
