King of Prussia, PA – The Wolf Administration announced today that construction will begin next week on a project to rehabilitate the half-mile-long Wayne Junction Viaduct that carries U.S. 1 (Roosevelt Expressway) over SEPTA tracks and the Nicetown section of Philadelphia.
"This rehabilitation project will result in a structurally sound viaduct that will safely and efficiently handle the demands of the more than 125,000 motorists who use the expressway each day to connect between Northeast Philadelphia and the Schuylkill Expressway with its connections to Center City and the western suburbs,” Governor Tom Wolf said.
Under this project, PennDOT will rehabilitate the 15-span, 2,600-foot long steel multi-girder structure by placing a new concrete deck; repairing structural steel and deteriorated concrete in the substructures; cleaning and painting; and replacing bearings, downspouts and scuppers.
The project also includes installing new directional signing along U.S. 1 (Roosevelt Expressway); upgrading Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) components; and rehabilitating the bridge carrying Fox Street over U.S. 1 (Roosevelt Expressway).
Beginning Wednesday, February 13, crews will begin repairs to the concrete piers that support the northern section of the viaduct between Germantown Avenue and 18th Street. Following inspection of the piers to identify areas needing repair, crews will use lightweight pneumatic tools to remove areas of deteriorated concrete. The deteriorated sections of the piers will be repaired with concrete this spring.
Crews will work from 7:00 AM to 3:00 PM, Mondays through Fridays, depending on weather conditions. When completed on the northern end of the viaduct, the operation will move to south of Germantown Avenue, where work will be coordinated with SEPTA, CSX Railroad and Comcast facilities under the viaduct and continue until spring.
The scheduled activities will not impact vehicular or pedestrian travel on the viaduct or any of the surface streets beneath the viaduct.
Work is also scheduled to begin this spring to improve the intersection of Fox Street and West Abbotsford Avenue, which will be used as a detour route for the Cayuga Street on-ramp to southbound U.S. 1 (Roosevelt Expressway). That ramp will be closed when staged construction on the top side of the viaduct gets underway later this year.
The ramp will remain closed until fall 2022 to safely maintain two lanes of southbound U.S. 1 (Roosevelt Expressway) during staged construction. PennDOT will maintain two lanes of traffic in both directions on the U.S. 1 (Roosevelt Expressway) during peak travel times during all stages of viaduct repairs.
South State, Inc. of Bridgeton, N.J. is the general contractor on the $88,456,609 project which is financed with 80 percent federal and 20 percent state funds. The entire project is expected to be completed in late 2022.
The project design and anticipated construction activities were coordinated with the Nicetown Community Development Corporation. Project elements including lighting and paving were added as a result of this outreach and paint color for the rehabilitated viaduct was selected by the community.