Permanent repairs to a section of Interstate 95 in northeast Philadelphia have been completed and the highway opened for traffic less than a year after it was heavily damaged when a tanker truck loaded with gasoline overturned, caught fire and caused the collapse of a portion of the highway.
All lanes of traffic on the heavily-traveled portion of I-95 were reopened May 24. Also opened was a lane of a newly constructed ramp from northbound I-95 to Cottman Avenue, the site of the June 11, 2023 crash that claimed the life of the truck driver.
A portion of the damaged section of I-95 was reopened June 23, 2023 when a temporary roadway with six lanes of traffic was completed in the center of the interstate by crew using a material made from recycled glass as fill. The outer sections on the northbound and southbound sides of the bridge were then rebuilt before I-95 traffic was shifted from the temporary center lanes, onto the completed, outer sections of the new bridge last November.
The $20 million cost of the project was covered by federal funds.
“Today serves as another example to all that Pennsylvania can do big things," Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Secretary Mike Carroll said at a reopening ceremony. “Thanks to the dedication of the workers and incredible coordination between the Shapiro Administration, our federal partners, and the City of Philadelphia, traffic flowed freely on I-95 throughout construction and we were able to restore the roadway to full capacity less than a year after the tragic fire and collapse."
Nate Moody, the 53-year-old driver of the tank truck that crash, died in the incident.
