Repairs to Mon Incline nearly done, could reopen in May

Work to repair damage to the Monongahela Incline caused by a series of water main breaks in January is expected to be completed this week.

But the 149-year-old cable rail car will likely not reopen to the public until May, according to the Allegheny County Port Authority, which owns the incline.

Preventative maintenance must be completed and the system must be inspected before passengers can once again ride up and down Mt. Washington.

The incline is scheduled to be load tested on April 22, said Authority spokesman Adam Brandolph. Once the testing is completed, crews plan to replace the incline’s safety cable.

The cable is is not part of the repair work but is being done to prevent the incline from being taken out of service later this year, Brandolph said.

The incline, which connects Mt. Washington and the South Side, was closed Feb. 4 after suffering significant damage from nearby water main breaks.

The final calculation for the cost of repairs and a decision about whether the Port Authority will seek reimbursement from the city or the water authority will not be made until after the work is completed, Brandolph said.

On Jan. 19, a Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority water main running along Mt. Washington’s Grandview Avenue ruptured and flooded the upper station.

The station was closed for five days following the mishap.

Another water main break about two weeks later damaged the incline’s internal mechanism and the upper station, according to the Port Authority.

Work to repair damage caused by the water main breaks included reinforcement of the upper station’s southern foundation wall.

The Monongahela Incline first opened in 1870 and is the oldest continuously operated funicular in the country.