A small construction project will begin Monday in Downtown Pittsburgh, but the impact on traffic near Market Square will be sizable for several weeks.

We’re talking about the streets around Triangle Park and the closing or restricting of parts of Fifth Avenue and Market Street. 

You don’t have to watch the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Liberty Avenue for long to realize how many drivers make the turn off of Liberty and onto Fifth. 

A repeated problem with pooling of water at the corner of Fifth and Market is prompting the closing of outbound traffic on Fifth for that very short block as the inbound buses on the University Line will move over into the outbound lane to get to Liberty.

At the same time, the part of Market that goes in front of the Fairmont Hotel will lose its right lane and parking lane, but will remain open to truck traffic only that needs to get to businesses along Fifth Avenue.

That means if you want to go outbound on Fifth Avenue for the next three weeks, you’re going to have to continue east on Liberty to Wood Street, take a right back to Fifth, or access Wood Street off Fourth Avenue.

This is going to be a significant closing as a contractor for Pittsburgh Regional Transit digs up the streets and corrects the drainage issue.

The bus stop on Fifth Avenue will be closed and everyone will be sent across the park to the stop along Liberty Avenue.

The closures will take effect Monday morning and last for three works. Work will take place from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. 

There are likely going to be a lot of confused drivers who are going to get that right turn onto Fifth off of Liberty and find it closed with detours that aren’t direct or obvious if you don’t know Downtown Pittsburgh.