Motorists won’t be able to park along stretches of Chestnut, Walnut and Market streets in Center City for more than two years due to ongoing bridge construction projects, according to a posted sign.
In March 2025, PennDOT announced a multimillion-dollar improvement project to rehabilitate the bridges that carry Market Street over Amtrak and I-76, the Schuylkill River Trail, and CSX Railroad in Center City Philadelphia.
PennDOT said the utility work on Market Street is in preparation for the closure, demolition, and reconstruction of the Market Street Bridge over the Schuylkill River, which is scheduled to begin on Monday, Aug. 24.
When the rehab is done, the traffic pattern will be the same. However, PennDOT said it will add a new, two-way concrete protected bike lane.
Due to both the Market Street Bridges project as well as ongoing improvements to the Walnut Street Bridge, parking was prohibited along the following streets on Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026, according to PennDOT:
Chestnut Street between 23rd and 22nd Street – The parking area here will be changed to a turning lane for the Market Street Bridges Project.
23rd Street between Market Street and Walnut Street – The parking area here will be the Bicycle Lane Detour for the Market Street Bridges Project.
Walnut Street between 23rd Street and 33rd Street – PennDOT says there will be no parking in this area to facilitate traffic/lane shifts for Walnut Street Bridge repairs. This will be done in stages, according to the transportation department.
Despite the Market Street Bridge closure scheduled for a 14-month span, a sign posted in the area stated the parking restrictions are scheduled to last until Dec. 31, 2028. NBC10 reached out to PennDOT for clarity.
A sign posted on Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026.
“As far as the two years on the signage itself, even though the MSB closure is scheduled for 14 months, there is other work included in this project where the detours will be needed to complete different stages of construction,” PennDOT spokesperson Brad Rudolph wrote to NBC10. “The plan is to get things done quicker than two years but that is the current schedule.”
You can track all of PennDOT’s construction projects throughout the region here.