PHILADELPHIA — Interstate 95 was set to reopen to traffic Friday less than two weeks after a deadly collapse in Philadelphia shut down a heavily traveled stretch of the East Coast’s main north-south highway.
Workers were putting the finishing touches on an interim six-lane roadway that will serve motorists during construction of a permanent bridge. Crews worked around the clock and were poised to finish ahead of schedule. The interstate was scheduled to reopen at noon, according to the governor’s office.
The elevated section of I-95 collapsed early on June 11 after a tractor-trailer hauling gasoline flipped on an off-ramp and caught fire. State transportation officials said the driver, who was killed, lost control around a curve. There were no other deaths or injuries.
The closure of an important commercial artery snarled traffic in and around Philadelphia and threatened to raise the cost of consumer goods as truckers were forced to detour around the area. State and federal officials pledged quick action to minimize the economic impact and inconvenience.
To get I-95 operating again as quickly as possible, workers used about 2,000 tons of lightweight glass nuggets to fill the underpass and bring it up to surface level, then paved over to create three lanes of travel in each direction. A permanent bridge will eventually be constructed.
President Joe Biden joined Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro on a helicopter tour of the site a little more than a week after the collapse and praised the design as “incredibly innovative in order to get this work done in record time.”
This image provided by the Philadelphia Fire Department shows officials working on the scene following a collapse on I-95 after a truck fire, Sunday, June 11, 2023, in Philadelphia. The elevated section of Interstate 95 has collapsed early Sunday after a vehicle caught fire, closing the main north-south highway on the East Coast and threatening to upend travel in parts of the densely populated Northeast. (Philadelphia Fire Department via AP)
Show is the aftermath of an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed, in Philadelphia, Monday, June 12, 2023. Drivers began longer commutes Monday after an elevated section of Interstate 95 collapsed in Philadelphia a day earlier following damage caused by a tanker truck carrying flammable cargo catching fire.(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
A investigator surveys the aftermath of an elevated section of Interstate 95 that collapsed, in Philadelphia, Monday, June 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg arrives at the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, left, meets with Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney at the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
A person views the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Crews continue to work the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
A construction worker cuts rebar at the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Crews continue to work the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
A construction worker cuts rebar at the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Crews continue to work the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Wednesday, June 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Officials, including U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, view the scene of a collapsed elevated section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Tuesday, June 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
President Joe Biden speaks about the Interstate 95 highway collapse after an aerial tour of the site at Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia, Saturday, June 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., looks to President Joe Biden as he speaks at the Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia, Saturday, June 17, 2023, after an aerial tour of the Interstate 95 highway collapse. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., looks to President Joe Biden as he speaks at the Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia, Saturday, June 17, 2023, after an aerial tour of the Interstate 95 highway collapse. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
President Joe Biden accompanied by Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, right, look at pictures of a collapsed section of Interstate 95, in Philadelphia, Saturday, June 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., shakes hands with President Joe Biden at the Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia, Saturday, June 17, 2023, after an aerial tour of the Interstate 95 highway collapse. Rep. Brendan Boyle, D-Pa., left, and Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., look on. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
With rain threatening to delay the reopening, a truck-mounted jet dryer normally used to keep moisture off the track at Pocono Raceway was brought in to keep the fresh asphalt dry enough for lines to be painted.
The 24-hour construction work was live-streamed, drawing thousands of viewers online.
