​Milestone marks completion of outer lanes on the new bridge and a traffic switch to new travel

Philadelphia, PA – At an event today, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) Secretary Mike Carroll marked a major milestone as work on the permanent repair of I-95 continues safely and efficiently. PennDOT was joined by Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt, City of Philadelphia Deputy Managing Director for the Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Michael Carroll, P.E. and other officials to commemorate the shifting of traffic from the temporary roadway onto the newly completed outer travel lanes of the new permanent bridge on Interstate 95 in northeast Philadelphia. The traffic shift, which will begin tonight, is happening ahead of schedule.

After a fire on June 11 caused the roadway to collapse, Governor Shapiro and Secretary Carroll led a coordinated state, local, and federal response to reopen the roadway safely and as quickly as possible, and efforts were ahead of schedule each step of the way to get traffic flowing on I-95 again. A temporary roadway with six lanes of traffic opened on June 23, only 12 days after the initial fire and collapse. 

"Today serves as another example to all that Pennsylvania can do big things," said Secretary Carroll. "Thanks to the dedication of the workers and continued coordination between the Shapiro Administration, our federal partners and the City of Philadelphia, traffic continues to flow freely on I-95 and we are one step closer to restoring I-95 to its full capacity."

Motorists are advised of the following travel restrictions:

• Monday, November 6, northbound I-95 will be reduced to two lanes from 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM, then to one lane from 11:00 PM to 5:00 AM the following morning through the Cottman Avenue Interchange; and
• Wednesday, November 8, southbound I-95 will be reduced to two lanes from 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM, then to one lane from 11:00 PM to 5:00 AM the following morning through the Cottman Avenue Interchange.
  

Crews each night will move and reset temporary construction barriers and repaint lane markings prior to shifting three lanes of northbound (Monday night) vehicles and three lanes of southbound (Wednesday night) onto the outer sections of the new span.

"The Federal Highway Administration is proud to join PennDOT and our state, local and private sector partners in Pennsylvania today to celebrate this important milestone marking the completion of the first stage of permanent repairs to I-95," said Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt. "We know that the I-95 corridor is a critical connection for people and goods traveling along the East Coast, and that's why this work stands as a testament to what we can accomplish together with a whole of government approach to restore this vital link that is critical to our nation." 

Following the traffic shifts, the temporary roadway will be removed, and work will begin to build the permanent structure in its place and open the Cottman Avenue off-ramp. The recycled glass aggregate currently being used in the temporary roadway will be reused in other projects along the I-95 corridor, including the I-95 Cap project at Penn's Landing. 

The entire new structure, plus reconstruction of the lower portion of the Cottman Avenue off-ramp, is expected to be completed and the northbound interchange reopened in 2024. 

For more information on the permanent reconstruction project, visit PennDOT's I-95 Cottman Avenue Updates page.

Motorists are advised to allow extra time when traveling through the work areas because backups and delays will occur. All scheduled activities are weather dependent. 

Motorists can check conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 1,000 traffic cameras. 

For a complete list of construction projects impacting state-owned highways in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties, visit the District 6 Traffic Bulletin.

Information about infrastructure in District 6, including completed work and significant projects, is available at www.penndot.pa.gov/D6Results. Find PennDOT's planned and active construction projects at www.projects.penndot.gov. 

Subscribe to PennDOT District 6 news and traffic alerts at www.penndot.pa.gov/District6.

Follow PennDOT on X and like the department on Facebook and Instagram.

Contacts: 
Alexis Campbell, alecampbel@pa.gov or 717-783-8800
Krys Johnson, krysjohnso@pa.gov or 610-205-6797 

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