A closed section of Interstate 376/Parkway East in Pittsburgh, Edgewood and Swissvale is expected to reopen Monday evening — a week earlier than scheduled, and a development that likely will relieve thousands of daily commuters who had been forced to use myriad detours since work began July 10 to replace the Commercial Street Bridge.
Gov. Josh Shapiro, Lt. Gov. Austin Davis and other state and local officials are expected Monday afternoon to visit the closed section of the Parkway East, between the Edgewood and Squirrel Hill exits, where Pennsylvania Department of Transportation crews imploded the 75-year-old Commercial Street Bridge on July 16 and then successfully slid its 11,000-ton replacement into place last Sunday and Monday.
The timing for the highway to reopen will be announced at that event, PennDOT said.
The affected section of the highway had been slated for closure from July 10 to Aug. 3. PennDOT officials said last week that the highway could reopen a few days early, although an exact date had not been determined then.
Commercial Street and Nine Mile Run Trail, under the bridge, will reopen after the bridge does, but a date has not been announced. Clean-up of debris from the old bridge demolition is expected to stretch into next year.