Transportation Sec. Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday warned that there will be pressure on the supply chain due to the collapse of a section of Interstate 95 while on a visit to Philadelphia to view the damage.
“At the end of the day, there’s no substitute for I-95 being up and running in full working condition and that’s the goal that everybody’s moving towards here,” the secretary said, adding there is “no question” the impact will be “pressure” on the supply chain until it’s resolved.
I-95 in Philadelphia could be closed for months after lanes partially collapsed on Sunday when a tanker truck caught fire underneath the highway, causing lanes above to buckle. Officials have warned that detours will lead to significant delays in the coming weeks.
Buttigieg on Tuesday outlined that 160,000 vehicles a day, on average, travel on that road and eight percent of those vehicles are trucks.
“What it means is that that trucks will have to take a longer and more costly route to get to where they’re going,” the secretary said.
He noted that supply chain disruptions are always a concern and that Gov. Josh Shapiro’s (D-Pa.) office, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and other local agencies are working in an “innovative and very focused way” to restore the highway.
“Every resource that is needed will be made available. Of course it has to qualify,” he added.