One of the main entrances into Braddock will close Monday until sometime in December so that a contractor can replace the ramp from Kenmawr Avenue onto Braddock Avenue under the Rankin Bridge.
The 10-month project by Mosites Construction Co. also will close some other streets around the ramp at various times, according to the Allegheny County Department of Public Works. The county owns the bridge and the ramps that surround it.
The ramp will close at 9 a.m. from the traffic light on Kenmawr at the Talbot Avenue intersection onto Braddock Avenue, the main street through the borough. In addition, Fleet Street that passes under the ramp will be closed from West Braddock Avenue to Maple Way, and Maple Way below and beside the ramp will close from Fleet Street to Pattison Avenue.
Initially, the 8,381 vehicles a day that use the ramp will be diverted onto the Talbot Avenue ramp to Fourth Street if they are heading into Braddock and the reverse if they are leaving. Trucks will follow the same detour.
Later in the $9.3 million project, the Talbot Avenue ramp also will close for installation of new traffic signals, and Hamilton Street will close between Braddock Avenue and Maple Way. New detours will be announced at that time.
The new ramp will include sidewalks, drainage, a median barrier, traffic signals, streetlights, signs and pavement markings.
The ramp is expected to be completed before the end of the year, but some finishing work will continue into 2025.
The existing ramp has been repaved many times over the years, but after a year or two the bottom third seems to develop rough pavement and eventually potholes.
Ed covers transportation at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at eblazina@unionprogress.com.