\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThe Parkway East shutdown is underway and PennDOT says the Commercial Street Bridge replacement project is moving along very well.”Welcome to the first episode of ‘Extreme Highway Makeover,'” PennDOT District 11 Executive Jason Zang said at a Monday morning news conference.Zang said the bridge will be imploded this week, followed by debris cleanup, and workers could potentially slide the new bridge into place as early as next week.A date for the implosion has not been announced yet. Zang said about 60% of the bridge deck has been taken down, with two more spans to go. The deck needs to come down before the implosion can happen.Parkway East closure update: Watch FULL VIDEO of the PennDOT news conference aboveInterstate 376 is closed between the Squirrel Hill Tunnel and Edgewood-Swissvale exit. Monday is the first weekday that drivers are navigating the detours.Detour times on Monday morning were running about 30 minutes consistently, Zang said. Check your detour times by clicking here.PennDOT will continue to monitor the detours and make any changes or tweaks as necessary. Zang advised drivers to continue to plan ahead before trips.”I really think people are planning ahead. If they weren’t, I think the detours would be much worse than 30 minutes,” he said.BRIDGE DECK COMING DOWNSky 4 showed construction crews tearing down the bridge deck. Watch that video above.I-376 is expected to be shut down until Aug. 3. Commercial Street beneath the parkway will also be closed during this time.Watch livestreaming video of the bridge project from a PennDOT camera.We’ve created a guide to help you navigate the closure | Click here.The full closure of the Parkway East will allow crews to demolish the old Commercial Street Bridge before sliding the new bridge into place. During this time, crews will also work on other necessary repairs around the area, including the repaving of the Squirrel Hill Tunnel.All of this work, which began in 2024, marks one of PennDOT’s largest infrastructure projects to date.INTERACTIVE MAP: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.Answering Your QuestionsPittsburgh’s Action Traffic anchor Lily Coleman has dedicated herself to finding out the answers to your questions on the project. For the questions of the day, click here.\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
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The Parkway East shutdown is underway and PennDOT says the Commercial Street Bridge replacement project<\/a> is moving along very well.<\/p>\n “Welcome to the first episode of ‘Extreme Highway Makeover,'” PennDOT District 11 Executive Jason Zang said at a Monday morning news conference.<\/p>\n Zang said the bridge will be imploded this week, followed by debris cleanup, and workers could potentially slide the new bridge into place as early as next week.<\/p>\n A date for the implosion has not been announced yet. Zang said about 60% of the bridge deck has been taken down, with two more spans to go. The deck needs to come down before the implosion can happen.<\/p>\n Parkway East closure update: Watch FULL VIDEO of the PennDOT news conference above<\/p>\n Interstate 376 is closed between the Squirrel Hill Tunnel and Edgewood-Swissvale exit. Monday is the first weekday that drivers are navigating the detours.<\/p>\n Detour times on Monday morning were running about 30 minutes consistently, Zang said. Check your detour times by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n PennDOT will continue to monitor the detours and make any changes or tweaks as necessary. Zang advised drivers to continue to plan ahead before trips.<\/p>\n “I really think people are planning ahead. If they weren’t, I think the detours would be much worse than 30 minutes,” he said.<\/p>\n BRIDGE DECK COMING DOWN<\/p>\n Sky 4 showed construction crews tearing down the bridge deck. Watch that video above.<\/p>\n I-376 is expected to be shut down until Aug. 3. Commercial Street beneath the parkway will also be closed during this time.<\/p>\n Watch livestreaming video<\/a> of the bridge project from a PennDOT camera.<\/p>\n