Armstrong Tunnel inbound portal will reopen
A new and improved inbound portal in the Armstrong Tunnel will reopen this month, marking the halfway point of a multimillion-dollar rehabilitation project that started more than a year ago.
“The new Armstrong Tunnel will be a much safer experience, both for drivers and pedestrians — that’s what good infrastructure is,” county Executive Sara Innamorato
said Friday morning at the construction site.
City and state officials on Friday announced that the inbound portal connecting Second Avenue at the Philip Murray Bridge (10th Street Bridge) with Forbes Avenue at the edge of the Duquesne University campus will reopen on April 13, more than a year after it was shut down to the public.
On the same day, the outbound lane will close to begin similar rehabilitation, which is expected to last another year. During the closure, all vehicles will be detoured using Forbes Avenue, Chatham Square, Fifth Avenue, Ross Street and Second Avenue, officials said.
“Inside [the outbound tunnel], you get a sense of why this project was necessary,” said Jason Molinero, deputy director of Allegheny County Public Works. “The lighting system was unreliable, a lot of the fixtures had been damaged — we had a lot of non-functional features in here.”
Pittsburghers can expect several noticeable changes in the inbound portal, including: a new lane configuration meant to slow down traffic; a widened sidewalk for pedestrians; removal of the ceramic tile liner and replacement with fireproof wall panels; masonry cleaning at the tunnel entrances and exits; lighting, electrical, and fire detection;
suppression system upgrades; installation of a CCTV monitoring system; and placement of new pavement, curb, signage, and pavement markings.
Before the project began, the almost century-old tunnel had not undergone any upgrades since 1991.
“I like to say this [tunnel] is going to be state-of-theart,” Mr. Molinero said.
More than 11,039 vehicles travel through both portals daily, according to county data.
About 80% of the $13.1 million cost of the project comes from the Federal Highway Administration, while the county, which owns the tunnel, shoulders the rest of the expenses.
Within the federal funding, $1.25 million is drawn from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, President Joe Biden’s hardfought $1 trillion infrastructure deal which he signed into law in November 2021.
“Many of our local projects have been [going on] quietly, without people even realizing it was the IIJA or the other federal programs that are making them happen,” U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, said.
“So I’m happy to be with you today to celebrate this project milestone, and I’ll be even happier when we’re back here in a year,” she said.
Allegheny County Public Works Director Stephen Shanley said he wanted to reassure the public that the county properly maintains its infrastructure after the Fern Hollow bridge collapse in 2022 that injured several people and the recent collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore that killed six people.
“The tunnel is the only one owned by Allegheny County, and we treat it as we do our bridges — diligently and properly,” he said.
The county owns 518 bridges and has reduced the number of those rated in poor condition by 69% in the past decade.
Ms. Innamorato said that no place knows infrastructure like Pittsburgh.
“A city and region like ours, with hills and rivers and valleys, needs bridges, tunnels, and walls to keep us safe and allow us to return safely to our destination,” she said.