A pair of crashes slowed traffic on busy Interstate 76 in Philadelphia during the Friday morning commute.
The first wreck happened before 5 a.m. along the westbound Schuylkill Expressway (I-76) between Lincoln Drive/Kelly Drive (Exit 340A) and U.S. Route 1 - City Avenue (Exit 339). A dump truck spilled its load near where the highway splits.
Only one lane could squeeze by that scene as crews worked to clear the scene, causing traffic to back up to Montgomery Drive/West River Drive (Exit 341). The truck was upright by daybreak, but the spilled load continued to cover the roadway.
Then, shortly before 6 a.m. a second crash happened further up along westbound I-76 between Montgomery Drive and U.S. 1 North - Roosevelt Boulevard (Exit 340B). Firefighters could be seen surrounding a car and appearing to rip the roof off. Cars slowly moved by on the shoulder.
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By 6:30 a.m., the entire highway leading up to the Montgomery Drive crash was closed briefly, before the shoulder got moving again.
It was taking drivers 75 minutes (or more) to get from the Vine Street Expressway (I-676) to the Blue Route (1-476) before 7 a.m.
The dump truck crash appeared to be cleared by 8:10 a.m., however the other wreck was still being reported by 511PA.com. The other crash was cleared later in the morning.
Transportation and Transit
The best bet for drivers heading out of Philly during the rush was to avoid I-76 entirely. Kelly Drive, MLK Drive and Belmont Avenue can be used as alternate routes. Lancaster Avenue can also be used to get out to the Main Line and Montgomery County.
Drivers heading eastbound toward Center City also dealt with a slower ride as traffic slowed past the crash scenes.
No word yet on the extent of injuries, however, one person could be seen being taken out of the second crash near Montgomery Drive.
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