Bridges and Tunnels

Bridges in Allegheny County are owned and maintained by a variety of entities, including the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), Allegheny County, local municipalities, and various railroad companies. To find out who maintains a specific bridge, view the Who Owns My Infrastructure map.

In an emergency, call 9-1-1 immediately. For non-emergencies, call 412-350-INFO (4636) on weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. You also can report issues online by visiting the Allegheny County Support Center.

Call 412-350-INFO (4636) on weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. You also can report issues online by visiting the Allegheny County Support Center.

Call 412-350-INFO (4636) on weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. You also can report issues online by visiting the Allegheny County Support Center.

Public Works Bridge Division engineers use inspection reports produced by licensed consultants with certified inspectors to plan major bridge projects five to 15 years in advance, depending on the complexity of the project. The project could be a preservation, which is intended to keep a bridge in good condition and extend its useful life by taking actions to prevent, delay, or reduce deterioration. Or it could be a rehabilitation project that restores the bridge’s components, addresses ongoing issues, and improves structural integrity. A full bridge replacement is an option when repairs are too costly or the bridge has exceeded its useful life.

In between major bridge projects, county-owned bridges are regularly and proactively maintained by in-house crews as well as on-call bridge inspection and construction consultants. Public Works annually bids a bridge repair contract for needed non-emergency work. If a bridge issue needs immediate attention, Public Works is always prepared to respond quickly.

Public Works uses a number of criteria to prioritize its bridge projects. They include a bridge’s condition, average daily traffic, amount of truck traffic, length of a detour if the bridge needs to be closed, whether it is used for a transit or school bus route, and its proximity to fire stations, schools, and hospitals. The department also considers the estimated remaining life of a bridge if a project is not done, as well as available funding.

Visit the Projects and Closures page, which includes links to project overviews, start and estimated end dates, location and detour maps, plans, photos, and progress updates.

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Work at construction sites must occur in a specific order to be done properly, and construction workers are often specialized. They might be steel and iron workers, painters, carpenters, electricians, heavy equipment operators, etc. Because of that, the workers on-site often can’t do their work simultaneously. It’s similar to a football player specializing in kicking who can’t be brought onto the field until his team scores a touchdown.

Also, there are on-site inspectors and project managers whose job is to watch the work taking place, ensuring that workers remain safe, follow construction plans as designed, perform high-quality work, remain on schedule, and avoid unexpected costs.

There are numerous reasons that might occur, including:

• Construction contractors have the ability – with limits – to set their work schedules. For example, a contractor might decide to work four 10-hour shifts Monday through Thursday and not work on Friday. They might also choose to place all of their crews at another work site for a few days where a need is more immediately pressing. Contractors always have until a specific date the county sets to complete their work. Unless there are unforeseen circumstances, Public Works will penalize contractors financially if a project isn’t completed by that date.
  
  
• Weather that is too hot, cold, or wet for the remaining work to occur. For example, new concrete and asphalt cannot be poured and placed in certain conditions. If it is, the end product will be poor and deteriorate quickly.
  
  
• Heavy equipment issues. Contractors try to continue working when equipment breaks down. Sometimes, though, that is not possible because that specific equipment is needed to complete the next step on the construction plans.

• Specific work is completed earlier than expected. Construction projects are a team effort, often involving a primary contractor and multiple specialized subcontractors. If one contractor completes their work early, another contractor might not have the crews available to get on-site earlier than expected. If that occurs at the end of the project – often when only line painting or guide rail installation remains – a road or bridge might remain closed while no work is occurring.

Sometimes, Public Works contractors do work overnight, especially when needed at a critical, high-traffic location. However, in most cases, the department prevents its contractors from performing work overnight for several reasons:

• The noise and lights associated with construction work can be disruptive to residents trying to get sleep. In fact, municipalities often have a noise ordinance that can restrict overnight construction work.
  
  
• Overnight work is more dangerous for workers.
  
  
• Overnight work is significantly more expensive than work done during regular business hours. Public Works generally believes those extra costs are not an effective use of taxpayer money. Available funding is better used getting more projects completed instead of much fewer projects done faster.

In most cases, property owners are responsible for stream and creek maintenance on their properties. For more information, view the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Stream Maintenance Booklet.

For stream and creek maintenance assistance, contact the DEP Southwest Regional Office at 412-442-4000. For general flood-related assistance, contact the Federal Emergency Management Agency at 1-800-621-3362. The agency also offers post-flooding information and resources.

Public Works does not maintain or repair private bridges and culverts, including those used as driveways on a county-owned road. The property owner is responsible for maintaining and repairing those structures.

The department also does not maintain or repair pipes under private driveways or under the entrance to private driveways, even if the driveway intersects with a county-owned road. The property owner is responsible for clearing and repairing the driveway pipe, and that work might require permits from Allegheny County and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

Download Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Homeowner’s Guide to Stormwater(PDF, 1MB). The guide will help you better understand what stormwater is, why stormwater runoff can be a problem, and what you can do about it.

Email specialeventspermit@alleghenycounty.us or call 412-350-2451. Special events include parades and other community events, runs, walks, athletic competitions, block parties, exhibits, and performances. First Amendment activities, such as public assemblies and marches, political and religious speeches, printed material distribution, and signature collection, do not require a Public Works permit.

An Overload/Oversize Permit is required before driving a vehicle that is more than 8 feet, 6 inches wide; 13 feet, 6 inches high; 75 feet long; or 80,000 pounds on a county-maintained road or bridge. For more information, email oversizepermits@alleghenycounty.us or call 412-350-2517.

Inspectors look at larger bridges at least once every two years and smaller bridges at least once every two to five years. Inspectors sometimes analyze bridges in poor condition more frequently.

Between official inspections, Public Works maintenance crews monitor the condition of bridges that carry county-owned roads, and if they see an issue, they immediately report it to the engineers in the Bridge Division.

When a construction project is being designed for a county-owned bridge, in-house and consultant engineers make multiple onsite visits to evaluate the bridge and site. If an issue arises between inspection reports, it is likely identified during an onsite visit.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) hires a licensed consultant on the county’s behalf to inspect all bridges that are 20 feet or longer. For county-owned bridges shorter than 20 feet, the county independently hires multiple licensed consultants to perform inspections.

With an extensive training and certification program, Pennsylvania meets and exceeds National Bridge Inspection Standards (NBIS) for bridge safety inspectors. To become a certified inspector in Pennsylvania, an engineer must complete PennDOT's Bridge Safety Inspector Training and Certification program. To maintain a Pennsylvania inspection certification, inspectors are required to attend a refresher training course every two years.

Certified bridge safety inspectors evaluate an entire bridge to verify its condition as compared to the condition of the bridge when it was first built and in subsequent inspection reports. Each bridge component is inspected primarily for deterioration due to weather, chemicals (such as road salt), and traffic impacts. The inspectors’ assessment includes looking for rust/corrosion of steel, cracks in steel and concrete, missing/broken off sections of concrete, flow of water around bridge supports, and streambed erosion. While every component of a bridge is inspected, emphasis is placed on the primary structural elements that support traffic and the weight of the bridge itself.

At bridges that cross waterways too deep for inspectors to use wading techniques, divers inspect abutments and piers below the waterline for structural deterioration, streambed scour, or undermining at the foundations.

Based on the location and severity of the issues found, inspectors might perform a load-rating analysis and compare those results to previous studies to determine if the bridge’s load (or weight) capacity has changed.

After inspecting a bridge, the inspectors produce a thorough report — often hundreds of pages long for larger bridges. Reports include methods and procedures used for the inspection, a condition rating for each bridge component (deck, superstructure, substructure, or culvert), detailed findings (including photos), and a prioritized list of recommended repairs or replacement work.

During a bridge inspection, certified safety inspectors assign a condition rating to each primary bridge component — the deck, superstructure, substructure, or culvert. The rating number is on a 0 to 9 scale based on National Bridge Inspection Standards (NBIS) established by the Federal Highway Administration.

0 – Failed. Bridge is out of service and beyond corrective action.

1 – Imminent failure. Major deterioration in critical structural components. Bridge is closed, but corrective action may put the bridge back into light service.

2 – Critical. Deterioration of primary structural components has advanced, and the bridge will be closely monitored or closed until corrective action can be taken.

3 – Serious. Deterioration has seriously affected the primary structural components.

4 – Poor. Deterioration of primary structural elements has advanced.

5 – Fair. Primary structural elements are sound but showing minor cracks and signs of deterioration.

6 – Satisfactory. Structural elements showing minor deterioration.

7 – Good. Some minor problems noted.

8 – Very good.

9 – Excellent.

The overall condition of a bridge is determined by the lowest condition rating of its primary components. If the lowest rating is seven–nine, the bridge is in “good” condition. Bridges rated five–six are in “fair” condition. Bridges rated zero–four have at least one structural component with advanced deterioration, and are classified in “poor” condition.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) provides an interactive statewide map that details the overall condition — good, fair, or poor — of bridges 8 feet or longer that are located within the Commonwealth.

Bridges rated as being in poor condition are not necessarily unsafe. Condition ratings are a broad tool used to help plan improvements, repairs, and replacements. Similar to evaluating a person's overall health, a bridge's condition is complex and cannot be fully described using just three condition ratings. The overall health and safety of a bridge depends on many factors, including its type and construction materials, age, traffic volumes, load-carrying capacity, as well as the location and severity of its deterioration.

The safety of the traveling public is Public Works’ top priority, and the department’s Bridge Division always errs on the side of caution. If its bridge engineers believe there is any chance a county-owned bridge might be unsafe, they will take immediate action.

The bridge safety inspectors who evaluate county-owned bridges produce detailed reports that document any deterioration or damage that might reduce a bridge’s capacity to handle the maximum legal vehicle load (or weight), which is 36 tons for single-unit vehicles and 40 tons for combo vehicles. A single-unit vehicle is typically a car, pickup truck, motorhome, ambulance, or school bus. Examples of combination vehicles are tractor trailers or vehicles pulling a boat or trailer.

Based on the location and severity of the issues found, inspectors might perform a load-rating analysis and compare those results to previous studies to determine if the bridge’s load capacity has changed. Bridge Division engineers then review that analysis to determine what vehicle loads county-owned bridges can safely support on a regular basis.

Public Works is judicious when deciding whether to implement a weight limit, as the department does not want to unnecessarily restrict commercial traffic critical to the region’s economy. However, protecting drivers and county-owned bridges is the department’s top priority, and it always errs on the side of caution. If its bridge engineers believe a weight limit is needed to maintain safety, prevent further damage to a bridge, or extend a bridge’s service life, they will implement one immediately.

Local law enforcement upholds bridge weight limits. Drivers found not following a restriction could be fined and held responsible for any damage done to the bridge.

No. The limit is implemented to maintain safety, prevent further damage to a bridge, and extend the life of a bridge.

The safety of the traveling public is Public Works’ top priority, and the department’s Bridge Division always errs on the side of caution. If its bridge engineers believe there is any chance a county-owned bridge might be unsafe, they will take immediate action.

Public Works will always close bridges that have a zero or one rating and those with a load (or weight) capacity of less than three tons.

Public Works would likely close a bridge that has a two rating and might close a bridge that has a three or four rating. Deciding whether to close a bridge with a two–four rating depends on many factors, including its type and construction materials, age, traffic volumes, load-carrying capacity, as well as the location and severity of its deterioration.

The safety of the traveling public is Public Works’ top priority, and the department’s Bridge Division always errs on the side of caution. If bridge engineers believe there is any chance a county-owned bridge might be unsafe, they will take immediate action.