Port Authority Light Rail Replacement Starts in March

Port Authority plans to replace nearly a mile of aging and deteriorating light rail tracks and street pavement in Beechview starting in March.

The authority will shut down the section of Red Line for six months starting on March 27 to replace the embedded tracks and street pavement in the center lanes of Broadway Avenue.

The authority will host a community meeting in Beechview on Feb. 18 to present project information and answer questions. The 7 p.m. meeting will be held at St. Catherine of Siena Church.

The tracks carry the Red Line, which provides service to about 12,000 daily riders between the South Hills, Downtown and the North Shore. The section being replaced has reached the end of its useful life and has required 22 costly repairs since 2008 to keep it open.

“We must repair the track and concrete now or these conditions will worsen and cause more intrusive service disruptions for the thousands of people who rely on the Red Line each day,” said authority CEO Ellen McLean.

Port Authority has met with community and business leaders to discuss the project and already implemented some changes to lessen the public impact.

• The project was cut from two construction seasons to one construction season.
• The authority are providing a financial incentive for the contractor to finish ahead of schedule.
• The authority are placing four “crossovers” where vehicles and pedestrians can cut through the work zone on Broadway Avenue.

In addition, the authority will maintain one parking lane on Broadway Avenue in the heart of Beechview’s business district. And two travel lanes also will be maintained through the work zone.

Light rail riders will have options during the work, including a rail shuttle that connects to the Blue Line, a bus shuttle that will operate through the construction zone and a bus connection from Mt. Lebanon Station to Downtown via West Liberty Avenue.