Bridge work will detour PA Turnpike traffic between Monroeville, Harmar
The westbound lanes of the Pennsylvania Turnpike will be closed early Sunday between the Pittsburgh and Allegheny Valley exits to allow crews to work on the Saltsburg Road bridge.
Weather permitting, the closure will begin at 11:59 p.m. Saturday and is expected to last until 5 a.m. Sunday, turnpike officials said.
Drivers heading east on the section of the toll road, from the exit in Harmar toward the one in Monroeville, will be restricted to a single lane.
The Turnpike Commission recommends that westbound motorists exit at the Pittsburgh interchange and use the following 47-mile detour: West on Interstate 376 and north on Interstate 279, bearing right on the Ft. Duquesne Bridge to Route 28 northbound. Then take the Harmarville exit, heading east for a mile on Route 910, turning left onto Freeport Road, reentering the turnpike at the Allegheny Valley interchange.
During the closure, crews will erect beams for a new bridge that is being constructed to replace the existing bridge that carries Saltsburg Road above the turnpike at milepost 53.6 in Plum.
Traffic on the existing bridge won’t be affected during the Sunday turnpike closure.
The bridge work is in preparation for a project to reconstruct the turnpike between mileposts 53 and 57.
Jeff Himler is a TribLive reporter covering Greater Latrobe, Ligonier Valley, Mt. Pleasant Area and Derry Area school districts and their communities. He also reports on transportation issues. A journalist for more than three decades, he enjoys delving into local history. He can be reached at jhimler@triblive.com.
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