McKeesport-Duquesne Bridge to close for 25 days this month for preservation work

The McKeesport-Duquesne Bridge will be closed for 25 days starting on March 14, PennDOT said during a virtual meeting with neighbors on Thursday.

The closure is for preservation work on the nearly century-old bridge. The work is part of a $50 million project that will last until 2028, when a second closure will take place. That closure will last 99 days from June to mid-September of that year, PennDOT said. 

Because of the detour, what is currently a one-minute drive will take at least 20 minutes during the closure from March 14 to April 7, PennDOT's presentation said Thursday.  

"I'm a little frustrated. Yeah, it's worrying," Anisah Pirl said. "It's going to be hard for me, because I live in Rankin and I go through the bridge every day."

For her, that means 20 fewer minutes cooking or playing with her son. She does recognize that work on the bridge is long overdue. 

"It's gonna fall. I really do. It's big holes before you even get on the bridge," Pirl said. "It just needs work."

Crews will paint the bridge, repair concrete, modify the deck, make lighting upgrades and more. Much of the work will take place between the two major closures, PennDOT said, adding that crews will keep a lane open in both directions, except for intermittent 15-minute stoppages. 

The sidewalk will also be closed, at times, during the project. PennDOT says shuttles will run.

Pirl said she's worried about access to the hospital on the McKeesport side of the bridge. 

"If you're gonna be closed for that long, emergencies happen every day," Pirl said. "So, how are we gonna get other people to the hospital so they can get the proper care they need?"

If it goes as planned, the bridge will fully reopen to traffic in mid-September 2028, just after the 100th anniversary of its opening in 1928.