I-95 reopens to traffic in Northeast Philly, 12 days after a deadly fire caused a bridge collapse

Philadelphia firefighters riding aboard Engine 38 sailed across a section of I-95 Friday, reopening the East Coast’s main expressway. The ride came just 12 days after a blazing gasoline tanker-truck crash destroyed a bridge over the northbound Cottman Avenue exit ramp.

Right after Engine 38, the first fire company at the scene of the June 11 collapse, came Gritty, standing atop a ladder truck beside Philadelphia’s other sports mascots and pumping his furry fists — an exclamation point on Gov. Josh Shapiro’s praise for the “grit” of the 200 union construction workers who got the highway open months ahead of initial estimates, all while being broadcast live online.

“Over the past 12 days, the eyes of the nation have been on Pennsylvania. We’ve shown them what our grit, our determination, are all about. We showed them good government in action,” Shapiro said at a news conference on the temporary six-lane roadway over I-95, moments before traffic once again began flowing.

“When we work together, we can get s— done here in Pennsylvania,” the governor said.

State officials initially estimated it would take until early July to reopen the road to the public. But a cautious timeline, coupled with vigorous federal support, led to a quicker reopening.

PennDot decided to build a temporary roadway by filling in the gap with aggregate made of recycled glass and paving over the top of the massive pile. The approach allowed the highway to reopen sooner and, officials hope, will help relieve traffic congestion in the Northeast Corridor.

Six 11-foot-wide lanes — three in each direction — opened at noon. The first civilians to drive the northbound lanes honked their horns, and some waved at the workers in hard hats, public officials, and others on the southbound side, marking the occasion with a news conference.

Crews will begin working on both sides of the roadway to construct a permanent eight-lane bridge, a process that officials have said will take months.

While Shapiro has drawn praise for the way he’s rallied the troops and updated the public, he also has liberally spread the kudos around and continued to do so Friday: President Joe Biden, Mayor Jim Kenney, state lawmakers, firefighters, police, and — over and over — the members of the building-trades unions working on the job for Buckley & Co., the general contractor, and C. Abbonizio Contractors Inc., which did the demolition of the wrecked bridge.

Those workers became heroes to many following them on the I-95 livestream broadcast in bars and even at Citizens Bank Park as they labored around the clock through rain, heat, and Father’s Day.

“I didn’t do it, we did it,” Shapiro told Biden in a phone call shared with reporters Friday, thanking the president for his involvement. “Every step of the way, you were checking in with us.”

The partially reopened section, backfilled with a recycled glass aggregate from Delaware County, opened less than two weeks after a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline overturned, igniting the I-95 bridge, which then collapsed. New Jersey truck driver Nathan Moody died in the blaze, and Shapiro began his remarks by saying the city and state continue to pray for his family.

Former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, the president’s infrastructure czar, said Biden called him right after the crash and told him that rebuilding the section of I-95 was the most important project in the country. The administration has pledged to fund the reconstruction.

“He said ‘Move heaven and earth to get it done,’ ” Landrieu recalled. “I’d like to say Mr. President, I don’t know about heaven, but we moved a hell of a lot of earth to make it happen in a short period of time.” Earlier Landrieu shook hands with the construction workers, chatting with them as if he were at a backyard crawfish boil in his hometown.

The backfill material is safe and has been used in construction in Pennsylvania and many other states for a number of years, said PennDot Secretary Mike Carroll.

“This road is being opened because it’s completed, it’s safely completed, and it’s ready for traffic,” Carroll said. “And I don’t think the people of Philadelphia want to wait one more minute to put a vehicle across 95.”

Even with the section reopened, the Cottman Avenue exits are expected to remain closed as crews work to fully reconstruct the highway, PennDot has said. There is no official timeline for the full reconstruction. Officials have said they expect it to take months.

Still, Shapiro celebrated the reopening.

“Mr. Mayor, they said it couldn’t be done,” he said, turning to Kenney.

“They say a lot of things,” Kenney responded.

Staff writer Beatrice Forman contributed to this report.