Work Resumes on Route 65 in Emsworth

Construction work on Route 65 in Emsworth resumed Monday after falling behind schedule for about a month.

Demolition of an old bridge on Route 65 was delayed because of a Verizon fiber optic cable line that needs to be removed from the bridge in order for the work to proceed.

Jim Struzzi, PennDOT spokesman, said the fiber optic line has to be removed from the bridge, and temporarily supported during demolition and construction.

“Verizon was to do the work, but was delayed,” Struzzi said.

PennDOT arranged for a Verizon-approved contractor to begin work on the cable line. The contractor currently is working on shielding and temporarily supporting the fiber optic line and removing concrete slabs from the sidewalk. 

Complete demolition of the bridge will occur sometime next week, Struzzi said. 

“Obviously, PennDOT is pushing to have this work to relocate the fiber optic line completed as soon as possible,” he said.

The cable line  issue delayed the project's completion by about one month. The project was scheduled to be completed this fall, but whether the work can be wrapped up on the same timeline depends on the time it takes to relocate the line.

“We may be able to make up some time, but that all depends on how soon everything with the line is resolved,” Struzzi said.

“We understand the public frustration and are doing everything we can to get the project back on track,” he said.