March 29, 2023
JOHN GUCCIONE/PEXELS/WWW.ADVERGROUP.COM
The Bridge Street/Harbison Avenue ramp at Exit 27 on I-95 North will permanently close in April as part of a long-term highway reconstruction project, PennDOT officials said.
PennDOT plans to permanently close the I-95 North ramp to Bridge Street/Harbison Avenue next month as part of a long-term highway infrastructure project to improve traffic at the interchange, the agency said.
The ramp at Exit 27 in Northeast Philly will be shut down on or after April 18 as crews begin work on a retaining wall along the northbound side of the highway.
When the northbound off-ramp at Exit 27 closes, northbound I-95 and westbound Betsy Ross Bridge traffic heading for Bridge Street, Tacony Street and Harbison Avenue will begin using the Exit 26 off-ramp to Aramingo Avenue at the adjacent Betsy Ross Bridge/Aramingo Avenue Interchange, officials said.
Westbound bridge traffic and motorists traveling from Aramingo Avenue at the Betsy Ross Bridge Interchange will continue to have direct access to the northbound lanes on I-95.
PennDOT plans to place road signs on I-95 and the Betsy Ross Bridge to notify travelers of the pending changes and shutdown of Exit 27.
The $267.9 million Section BS2 project involves reconstructing the viaduct over Bridge and Tacony streets along with the adjacent sections of I-95. Work on I-95 immediately north of Bridge Street is in its final stages and is expected to finish by early summer, officials said.
The goal of the improvement project is to reduce the number of I-95 exits that take motorists onto lane streets and residential streets that are more prone to accidents.
Construction of the new retaining wall will allow crews to temporarily widen the northbound side of I-95 approaching the viaduct, creating a six-lane traffic pattern that runs through the work zone and interchange for the duration of the project.
Work is currently underway in the I-95 median south of Bridge Street to build a crossover for the new pattern. Construction to replace the southbound side of the viaduct is scheduled to begin in early 2024, followed by replacement of the northbound side.
