PHILADELPHIA -
"It's a mess."
"Not good."
"It was terrible."
Drivers on two stretches of I-95 heading into or out of Center City have been experiencing some real headaches lately, especially around rush hour. There's lots of traffic tie-ups and lane changes as the state gears up for the second phase of it's massive I-95 reconstruction project.
"I think it's a mess and they need to fix it," one driver told FOX 29.
"Set me back about an hour," said another.
"Terrible, but I got patience," said yet another driver
Zairai strickland ran smack into her own personal traffic nightmare as she drove her daughter to school, dodging heavy volume, the new traffic patterns and lane shifts.
"I was on the highway for an hour going south and then 45 minutes going north," strickland said.
It was the same story for Bill Springer, who was running late for a doctor's appointment thanks to the new patterns and a huge traffic back up.
"An hour to go, four miles," he said. "a little ridiculous."
PennDOT is in the second and final phase of the $212 million reconstruction of I-95 near Cottman and near Girard. Traffic will be shifted to the shoulders to allow for the removal of the center median, than back to the center as workers replace seven bridges and add new ramps.
"It's a mess. I've been riding around for 15 minutes trying to get back on the Tacony Bridge," a driver from New Jersey said.
PennDOT says drivers using I-95 both northbound and southbound should bring their patience, as this project won't be complete until 2016.
"I don't think that planning was too good," another driver said.
"You gotta take a little shot for the team for progress," said local businessman Rock Nicoletti.
"What do you think about the traffic pattern up there?" another driver was asked. "It was loco," he said, then laughed.
A look at the traffic heading into Center City along I-95 Thursday.
