Portion of I-95 in Philadelphia, PA, Collapses – How to Get Around It

Editor's note: PENNDOT now has official detours now posted. That information is below.

A truck fire under Interstate 95 in Northeast Philadelphia caused a portion of the roadway to collapse and commuters will be impacted for quite some time.

So how do you get around it?

The fire caused a northbound section of the highway between Cottman and Academy Roads to fall and the southbound side has been compromised.

The full extent of the damage is not yet known as officials are waiting for heavy equipment to arrive at the scene.

Closed

As of around noon Sunday, I-95 is closed in both directions between Woodhaven and Aramingo.

Long-term headaches

The Philadelphia Inquirer quotes Dominick Mireles, the director of Philadelphia's Office of Emergency Management, as saying it "could be weeks" before the highway reopens.

It is estimated that around 160,000 vehicles use I-95 through Center City everyday.

Getting around

Regardless of how you do it, leave yourself plenty of extra time.

Here are the official detours that have been posted:

• Northbound I-95: I-676 west to the Schuylkill Expressway westbound, then north on Route 1 to eastbound PA 63/Woodhaven Road, back to I-95.

• Southbound I-95: Westbound PA 63/Woodhaven Road to Route 1 south, I-76 east, I-676 east, back to I-95.<

Other options

If you are driving between New York City or Trenton and Wilmington or Baltimore, stay with either the New Jersey Turnpike (toll) or Interstate 295 (free) to completely bypass Philadelphia. There's no reason to go into Pennsylvania only to have to return to New Jersey.

If you must stay closer to the city, you can use any of the Delaware River crossings (avoid the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge as it is close to the I-95 closure) and use Route 130 on the Jersey side (130 tends to be a lot slower than the NJTP or I-295).

Those three options may be your best bets for the next several days.

If you have to stay within the city itself, you are going to need to have a creative approach -- and one that may be far out of your way -- so you can get from A to B.

U.S. Route 13/Frankfort Avenue is likely going to be a popular detour, but it cannot handle the volume of trafifc that I-95 usually sees.

The same can be said for Torresdale Avenue, which is a main north-south artery closer to I-95. That road has a red light on practically every block.

Simply put, the neighborhood streets around the fire scene can't handle interstate-level traffic.

• If you have any detour tips or tricks, send them to us and we will share them here.