January 02, 2024
Hargreaves Jones Associates/DRWC
A rendering of the planned park at Penn's Landing, which will replace the Chestnut Street bridge scheduled for demolition in February. The bridge will close Jan. 15.
The days are numbered for the Chestnut Street bridge over I-95 and Columbus Boulevard as construction continues on the new park at Penn's Landing.
PennDOT officials said the bridge, which connects with the Market Street bridge, will close Jan. 15. Then, likely next month, the bridge and what remains of the Walnut Street bridge will be demolished, PennDOT's deputy communications director Brad Rudolph said Tuesday. The demolitions will make room for the planned 11 1/2-acre park, scheduled for completion in 2029, that will span Chestnut and Walnut streets, cap I-95 and extend to the Delaware River waterfront.
The Market Street bridge will remain open for pedestrians to access Penn's Landing and the waterfront, but it will close to vehicular traffic when the Chestnut Street bridge over I-95 closes. Bus routes 5, 17, 21, 33, 38, 42 and 44 will be affected and drivers will be redirected south on Front and Dock streets.
Walnut Street's pedestrian bridge at Penn's Landing began its demolition for the park project in late 2023. Rudolph said the portion over Columbus Boulevard has been torn down, but the portion over I-95 will be demolished alongside the Chestnut Street bridge. Closures on that stretch of I-95 are likely, starting on the northbound side before moving to the southbound side.
In November, Irish and Scottish memorial sculptures were removed from Chestnut Street Park and temporarily relocated to Foglietta Plaza in preparation for the construction; the memorials will eventually reside in the new park.
Rudolph called the demolition "highly impactful."
"Once we get to the demo, we're over the highway on both structures, so we'll have to close directionally," Rudolph said. "We'll start northbound sometime in February, see how much work we get done and whether or not we need to do additional nights or weekends to complete the demo."
The $328.9 million project by PennDOT and the Delaware River Waterfront Corp. will revamp the stretch of I-95. It includes the park at Penn's Landing, construction of whic began in September, that will extend over I-95 and Columbus Boulevard. Amenities at the park will include an ice rink, memorials, public gardens, an amphitheater, a café and a pavilion. Construction also will include a two-mile extension of the South Street pedestrian bridge, which will connect walkers and cyclists to the Delaware River Trail.
The Delaware River Waterfront Corp. did not respond to a request for comment on the status of the project and planned closures.
Construction on the project was scheduled to begin in 2021 but was delayed by two years due to the pandemic, property rights and engineering issues.
