PennDOT puts incentives on Parkway East work as 25-day closure starts in Pittsburgh
PennDOT officials say the contract includes both incentives for finishing early and disincentives for delays.
WITH OUR RISKS AS WE GO THROUGH THE AFTERNOON, LILY. JILL. THANK YOU. WELL, THIS FRIDAY IS WHEN THAT LOOMING PARKWAY EAST CLOSURE BECOMES A REALITY FOR THE 100,000 PEOPLE WHO DRIVE THAT ROUTE DAILY. CREWS HAVE BEEN PLANNING, PREPARING AND REALLY WORKING ON THIS FOR YEARS. WE’VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT FOR MONTHS. AND NOW THE FUN OFFICIALLY BEGINS THIS WEEK WITH THAT 25 DAY CLOSURE. AND THIS MORNING, AS WE HELP YOU GET THE FACTS, WE’RE FOCUSING ON THE EMPHASIS OF 25 DAYS. THAT IS THE PLANNED AMOUNT OF TIME, ACCORDING TO PENNDOT OFFICIALS. HOWEVER, OF COURSE THINGS COULD CHANGE, BUT WE WON’T KNOW UNTIL WE ARE IN THE THICK OF IT. BUT THE GOAL HERE IS 25 DAYS AND PENNDOT DISTRICT 11 EXECUTIVE JASON ZHANG TELLS ME THERE ARE INCENTIVES IN PLACE FOR CREWS TO GET THAT JOB DONE EVEN SOONER. 25 DAYS IS THE TARGET IN IN OUR CONTRACT, THERE’S INCENTIVES FOR THE CONTRACTOR TO GET DONE SOONER. THERE’S ALSO DISINCENTIVES IF THEY DON’T HIT THE 25 DAY DATE AND WE DO THAT, WE DO DISINCENTIVES ON ALL CONTRACTS, BUT WE PUT THE INCENTIVES IN THERE ON THIS ONE, OBVIOUSLY, BECAUSE TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE. IT’S THE PARKWAY. WE WANT TO GET IT OPEN ABSOLUTELY AS QUICKLY AS WE CAN. SO THAT’S A GOOD WAY TO DO THAT. NOW, ZHANG SAYS IN A PERFECT WORLD, THAT WORK IS COMPLETE AND THE CLOSURE IS LIFTED WELL BEFORE THE 25 DAY MARK. BUT OF COURSE, NO ONE CAN PREDICT ANY HICCUPS OR ISSUES THAT CREWS MAY RUN INTO. SO AGAIN, ALL EYES REMAIN GLUED ON AUGUST 3RD, WHICH WOULD BE THE END GOAL HERE FOR THIS PROJECT. MEANTIME, KEEP SENDING US YOUR QUESTIONS. YOU CAN EMAIL THEM TO ME AT TRAFFIC@WTAE.COM. IF YOU’RE INTERESTED IN SEEING SOME OF T
PennDOT puts incentives on Parkway East work as 25-day closure starts in Pittsburgh
PennDOT officials say the contract includes both incentives for finishing early and disincentives for delays.
Updated: 12:17 PM EDT Jul 6, 2026
The Parkway East closure starts Friday, with PennDOT aiming to complete the project within 25 days, though incentives are in place to finish sooner.How will crews ensure the work is done in 25 days? PennDOT District 11 Executive Jason Zang said the contract includes both incentives for finishing early and disincentives for delays. “Twenty-five days is the target in our contract. There are incentives for the contractor to get done sooner. There’s also disincentives if they don’t hit the 25-day date, and we do that, we do disincentives on all contracts,” Zang said. He added, “But we put the incentives in there on this one, obviously, because time is of the essence. It’s the Parkway. We want to get it open absolutely as quickly as we can. So that’s a good way to do that,” Zang said. Do you have questions about the project, the work or the detours? Send us an email at traffictip@wtae.com.FULL BREAKDOWN OF THE DETOURS: Click here
PITTSBURGH —
The Parkway East closure starts Friday, with PennDOT aiming to complete the project within 25 days, though incentives are in place to finish sooner.
How will crews ensure the work is done in 25 days?
PennDOT District 11 Executive Jason Zang said the contract includes both incentives for finishing early and disincentives for delays.
“Twenty-five days is the target in our contract. There are incentives for the contractor to get done sooner. There’s also disincentives if they don’t hit the 25-day date, and we do that, we do disincentives on all contracts,” Zang said.
He added, “But we put the incentives in there on this one, obviously, because time is of the essence. It’s the Parkway. We want to get it open absolutely as quickly as we can. So that’s a good way to do that,” Zang said.
Do you have questions about the project, the work or the detours? Send us an email at traffictip@wtae.com.
FULL BREAKDOWN OF THE DETOURS: Click here