Parkway East expected to reopen by the middle of next week with replacement of Commercial Street Bridge

The Parkway East is expected to reopen by the middle of next week after PennDOT replaced the Commercial Street Bridge outside of the Squirrel Hill Tunnel earlier this week. 

Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Mike Carroll touted the project as a "stunning achievement" on Wednesday during a briefing at the site of the bridge replacement. 

The closure was initially expected to last 25 days, with a tentative reopening date of Aug 3. If contractors get the Parkway reopened before 12:01 a.m. on July 28, they will receive a $2 million bonus.

"We will have completed this project and opened the Parkway in less than three weeks," Carroll said. 

Carroll said that crews will continue working around the clock, and he looks forward to the bridge being opened "as soon as possible." PennDOT District 11 Executive Jason Zang said that crews are "rapidly continuing" the work needed to have the bridge ready to open by next week. 

Earlier this week, PennDOT announced that things were on track for an early opening, just over 24 hours after crews began sliding the new 22-million-pound bridge into place. The bridge was fully moved into place Monday morning. 

"I am not a civil engineer, but you don't have to be one to appreciate what has already been accomplished here," Carroll said.

The Parkway East has been closed between the Edgewood/Swissvale and Squirrel Hill interchanges during all this work, including the demolition of the old bridge on July 16.

While the closure is in effect, traffic is being detoured through multiple routes, and so far, the traffic impacts have remained minimal. The closure impacts a section of the Parkway that sees about 100,000 cars a day.

As for Commercial Street, that is not expected to open early. PennDOT hopes to get that connector cleared up and opened by Aug. 3.

The lanes of the Squirrel Hill Tunnel have also been repaved and will be inspected as part of this major project.