Governor Shapiro, PennDOT, Local, and Federal Partners Announce I-95 Reconstruction Plan to Safely and Quickly Reopen Roadway
Philadelphia, PA – Yesterday, Governor Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Mike Carroll, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, U.S. Department of Transportation Under Secretary for Policy Carlos Monje, Ryan Boyer from the Philadelphia Building Trades Council, and contractors announced that the demolition of the damaged section of I-95 is expected to be complete on Thursday – well ahead of schedule – and that the Administration, engineers, and contractors have developed a plan to safely and quickly reopen the roadway.
In consultation with federal engineers from the Federal Highway Administration, PennDOT has hired a contractor – Philadelphia-based contractor Buckley & Company – to backfill the gap in the roadway so that it can be paved over and reopened safely and as quickly as possible. Once complete, cars and trucks can return to this portion of I-95 as crews work to rebuild a permanent bridge while keeping six lanes of traffic flowing at all times.
A live feed is being set up and will operate 24/7 so the public can watch the rebuilding process in real-time. That live feed will be publicly available later this week.
"When I visited this site just a few hours after the fire and collapse on Sunday, I made it clear that my Administration would lead a coordinated response to reopen I-95 safely and as efficiently as possible," said Governor Josh Shapiro. "Getting I-95 repaired and reopened is our top priority – and we are working our tails off. Under the leadership of Secretary Carroll, and with the support of our federal and local partners and the talented trades workers right here in Philadelphia, we are moving full steam ahead. Government is working for the good people of Pennsylvania. We have a lot do to, and together, we will get this done."
As Governor Shapiro has repeatedly made clear, his Administration is all hands on deck to complete this project. For example, on Thursday, the Pennsylvania State Police will escort trucks carrying the backfill material – a specially-designed, Pennsylvania-made glass aggregate – from Delaware County up I-95 to the site to make sure those trucks arrive as quickly as possible.
"There has been tremendous amounts of work occurring with people that are very talented and engineers that are able to design a forward-looking structure that meets the immediate needs of this community, this city, while also making sure that we have a structure that will serve the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for decades," said Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Mike Carroll.
Governor Shapiro and Secretary Carroll have been in regular communication with President Biden and Secretary Buttigieg – who have pledged the full support of the federal government to provide the Commonwealth with the resources it needs to repair I-95.
"Our Highway Administration has released $3 million to support PennDOT's traffic mitigation efforts, the demolition of the damaged structure that you see behind us, and the emergency repairs necessary to restore this essential traffic," said U.S. Department of Transportation Under Secretary for Policy Carlos Monje. "I'd like to commend Governor Shapiro and Secretary Carroll for their flawless response and I'm really honored to be here with the working folks and the union members who are behind us."
The Shapiro Administration has also been in regular contact with Mayor Kenney and other local and state leaders to ensure the Philadelphia community has the resources it needs as crews work to reopen the roadways.
"I want to thank the Governor and all the state and federal partners who have joined us in Philadelphia this week to assess and begin to address the impact of the I-95 collapse," said Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney. "I'm very grateful for the immediate coordinated response by state and local partners who worked quickly and around the clock to create detours and supports for commuters, travelers, residents and local businesses affected by the disaster."
PennDOT employees and contractors have been working 24/7 since Sunday to complete demolition and begin the repair. Buckley & Company will deliver fill material from Delaware County to the site on Thursday to fill in the damaged area in order to rebuild the new section of road on top. Abbonizio Contractors was hired to handle the demolition and is expected to have the demolition completed on Thursday.
"We are the Philadelphia Building Trades – we work safe, we work hard, and for this, we want to work around the clock," said Philadelphia Building Trades Council Business Manager Ryan Boyer. "I want to thank the federal response, the local response and the state response. We have the right team here. We will make sure that this is done as quickly and as cleanly as possible."
On Monday, Governor Shapiro signed a Proclamation of Disaster Emergency, allowing the Commonwealth to immediately draw down federal funds and move quickly to begin the repair and reconstruction process. Lieutenant Governor Davis led a required meeting of the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Council on Tuesday to review the proclamation, which will remain in effect for 21 days unless extended by the legislature.
The latest information will continue to be available at www.pa.gov/i95updates.