Transportation Engineering and Safety Conference 2024

This session will present three projects from across the state highlighting the alternatives considered. Projects include the SR 28-Highland Park Interchange in Pittsburgh; a tale of two dated bridges crossing the Susquehanna River connecting Pittston and West Pittson in Luzerne County; and operations and design alternatives for Complete Streets project along Washington Avenue in Philadelphia.

Topic 1: SR 0028-A65 Highland Park Interchange Improvement Project
Speakers: David Jackson & Jessica Belowich   Tim Benner
State Route 28 is a limited-access facility that has two lanes in each direction throughout most of its length; however, at the Highland Park Interchange, Route 28 was only one lane in each direction. This configuration resulted in a physical bottleneck for traffic and frequent vehicle crashes. The Highland Park Interchange Improvement Project (SR 0028, Section A56) sought to address these issues. As part of this project, two lanes were established through the interchange to ensure lane continuity and increase mobility. In addition to reducing traffic congestion, the project addressed other deficiencies, including substandard roadway geometrics and vertical clearances. Sound barriers were installed to reduce noise for adjacent residents. The project enhanced pedestrian safety by installing three new traffic signals and upgrading pedestrian facilities along Freeport Road, which serves as the sole pedestrian link between the communities of Sharpsburg, Aspinwall, and O’Hara. Join us for a presentation that will share project details, project safety improvements, unique conditions, and challenges that were overcome in construction.
 
Topic 2: A Story of Transportation History, Big Data, and Two Bridges across the Susquehanna River
Speakers: Tim Benner & Rob Watts
In Luzerne County, between Pittston and West Pittston, two 1,000-foot bridges span the Susquehanna River within a quarter mile of each other. The Fort Jenkins Bridge--an 11-span concrete arch built in 1924--carries US Route 11 and is part of National Highway System and is in poor condition. The Water Street Bridge--a 5-span metal truss built in 1914--is a county-owned bridge that was closed in August 2021 due to structural deterioration.
The current and ongoing Fort Jenkins Bridge Project is studying both bridges, and the Alternatives Analysis looked at options for rehabilitating or replacing the bridges, with potential removal of one of the bridges. The presentation will tell the story of how the history of the bridges, the dynamics of the communities they connect, and network transportation demand were considered in the alternatives analysis process. Elements of the presentation will include the challenges of revising the project's purpose and need; the application and award of a $19 million RAISE Grant to fund the Water Street Bridge improvements; and origin-destination pattern analysis using "big data" tools.

Topic 3: Operations and Design Alternatives in Philadelphia Complete Streets Projects
Description
Speakers: Will Cowan, Andrew Simpson, & Adam Smith 
This presentation will focus on the operational and design alternatives for two complete streets projects in Philadelphia. The first is Washington Ave in South Philadelphia, where construction was completed in Spring 2023 and WSP just completed the post-installation analysis. The presenters will briefly introduce the initial alternatives analysis that was included as part of the conceptual design and public outreach process. They will then discuss the post-analysis travel time runs and volume collection and how that data compared with the assumptions and findings as part of the analysis of the selected alternative. The second project is Market Street from 20th to 23rd Street in Center City. WSP coordinated with OTIS, Streets, and PennDOT to compare several design alternatives. The presenters will delve into how the bike facility was located, the analysis that needed to account for the Market Street bridge reconstruction, and how consideration of bicycle and pedestrian safety was accounted for in the model and design.