I-95 in Philadelphia May Reopen Wednesday Night
A two–mile stretch of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia that has been closed since early Tuesday morning could open as soon as Wednesday night, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell’s office said in a statement.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and contractors are working around the clock to re-open the stretch, Rendell said in a statement released by PennDOT. Rendell said he was “cautiously optimistic” that the busy north-south corridor would reopen Wednesday night.
I-95 was shut down in both directions for emergency repair work Tuesday, backing up traffic for miles, the Associated Press reported. Workers were working on repairing a crack in a concrete support pillar.
Trucking mapping software firm Maptuit Corp. said in a statement Tuesday that its systems had “taken the necessary steps to ensure trucks are being diverted by implementing a global restriction to affect the routing around the affected area.”
The section of the interstate, which carries about 190,000 vehicles a day, was shut down after midnight, and traffic jammed at exits as motorists were sent on detours around the closed area during the Tuesday morning commute, AP said.
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter said officials hoped to have the damage repaired in two days, AP reported.
