A stretch of Rt. 19 in Upper St. Clair will be completely shut down this weekend

It's going to be a challenging weekend for drivers in the South Hills as PennDOT is preparing to close down part of Route 19 in Upper St. Clair for nearly two full days. 

PennDOT will be shutting down Route 19 between Boyce Road and McLaughlin Run Road starting at 6 a.m. on Saturday so that the Country Club Drive Bridge can be demolished. 

The bridge that spans Route 19's four lanes is not only narrow, but it has also come to the end of its repairable life, so it will succumb to gravity this weekend.

Given the essential nature of Route 19 for drivers in the South Hills of Pittsburgh, the contractor that's handling the demolition of the bridge has been given an extremely tight window.

Crews will have 40 hours to demolish the bridge, clear the debris, and get Route 19 reopened.

"We don't give them a lot of time because it's urgent, so they have to bring out more resources, you know, more equipment to tackle it and get it done quicker," said PennDOT's Doug Thompson. 

Southbound drivers who are routed around the closure will face a seven mile detour as they will need to exit Route 19 and turn left onto McLaughlin Run Road and make a left exit out of a roundabout and onto Lesnett Road.

A left turn onto Mayview Road will eventually bring drivers to a left turn onto Boyce Road, which will bring them back to Route 19, only about a half mile beyond the bridge. 

"We're working with the local police to try to keep things flowing as best as we can, but the message you get out to people too is if you can really try to avoid the area this this this weekend," Thompson said.

Upper St. Clair Township said that restrictions could be lifted earlier than 10 p.m. on Sunday if the work is completed earlier than expected, but it's unknown if that will actually happen.

This weekend's closure of Route 19 won't be the only one that takes place as at least one more disruption is expected before the new bridge is up and ready in September. 

A full detour for both cars and trucks have been posted on the township's website.