City of Pittsburgh to Reopen the Swindell Bridge on September 1
PITTSBURGH — The City of Pittsburgh is announcing the reopening of the Swindell Bridge, located in the city’s North Side neighborhoods, to all traffic on Thursday afternoon, September 1.
The bridge was closed on July 1, after the City was notified of debris falling from the underside of the structure. Prior to the closing, the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI) had contractors working in the area to address maintenance repairs on the bridge. Those repairs consisted of some milling and paving with partial overlay to resurface the area and create better driving conditions for residents.
Pursuant to the closure of the bridge, an emergency inspection was performed on Saturday, July 2, which found that material from the resurfacing deck repairs was accumulating in the expansion joint drainage trough. The additional weight of the debris caused the trough to tear open and spill onto I-279 Northbound below.
Repairs to the bridge were then hampered due to supply chain issues, but initial work, including the maintenance milling and paving operations, are completed. Larger repairs are still slated for later this year and the full-bridge rehabilitation project is moving forward in the planning phase.
As part of the emergency inspection, an underbridge crane was used to evaluate the structural components and review any potential problems. No additional deterioration or damage was found that would affect the structural capacity of the bridge. Routine inspections will continue occurring on a six-month schedule.
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