"New pretty much everything." That is how Amy Silbermann, Pittsburgh Regional Transit's chief development officer, described the Dormont Junction station project to PRT's Planning & Stakeholder Relations Committee in May, as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported. The station opened in 1985 as part of the first stage of the region's light rail. PRT's own condition review lists concrete cracks and spalling, corroded structural steel canopy columns, and sidewalk and ADA ramp repairs. The 2024 fixes were patches and paint.
The finished station is the long-term story. For anyone who boards the Red Line on Raleigh Avenue, though, the change that arrives first is about how service runs. From spring 2027 to spring 2029, PRT plans to run every inbound and outbound train at Dormont Junction through a single platform, and the open platform switches sides partway through. In 2027, a separate tunnel project also puts trains on a single track along the same stretch, and PRT has said that work comes first.
What PRT is building
PRT finished the station design this summer and showed the final plans at a community meeting on May 28, 2026. The drawings in the May 2026 public meeting presentation show these changes:
- The station platform shifts south, and a new driveway is added. That driveway removes 7 parking spaces.
- Canopies run the full length of the platform. They use frosted glass, so light comes through while riders are shaded from direct sun.
- New ramps, stairs and railings, plus wind screens, benches, bike racks, signage, a fare booth and fare vending.
- Better pedestrian circulation, better station safety and better ADA accessibility, as the presentation describes it.
The Post-Gazette added detail on the street side. The entrance moves to the center of the site to make it easier to reach from West Liberty and Biltmore avenues. Landscaping between the structures creates several ways onto the site, and the plan also includes more lighting and improved crosswalks.
The project has limits. PRT says any access improvements beyond the station property will be worked out later with PennDOT and the other road owners. The public materials don't describe any bus-route changes, and they don't spell out elevators or detailed ADA geometry. Those details may still exist in the civil drawings. They just aren't in the documents PRT presented to the public.
Which platform is open each year
PRT will rebuild one side of the station at a time and keep trains running on the other side. Here is the phasing from the May presentation:
| Period | Platform closed | Where all trains board | Work underway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 2027 to spring 2028 | Inbound | Outbound platform, single track | Inbound platform and adjacent sitework |
| Spring 2028 to spring 2029 | Outbound | Inbound platform, single track | Outbound platform and adjacent sitework |
| Spring 2029 | None | Both platforms | Construction complete |
A downtown commuter will spend the first year boarding inbound trains from what is normally the outbound side, and the second year boarding outbound trains from the inbound side. PRT says signs and temporary curb ramps will guide pedestrians through the station during each phase, and station signs will show where to board and when.
Single-tracking costs some time. In PRT's words, it "will cause a few minute delay in service while one train waits for another to clear the area." That wait happens in both directions for two years. Service will continue through most of the project, but PRT also expects scheduled outages, with shuttle buses running to and from neighboring stations during those windows. The May materials don't list outage dates, how long outages will last, or which stations the shuttles will serve.
Why 2027 is the busiest year
The station project isn't the only work on this section of the Red Line. The same presentation includes a slide on the Mt. Lebanon Tunnel Rail Replacement, which will replace track from Mt. Lebanon Station through Raleigh Avenue. That work is planned for 2027 and calls for several single-track periods of four to five weeks each, with inbound and outbound passengers boarding from one platform.
PRT says the two projects are being coordinated closely, and the tunnel work "will take precedent" over the station project because of state-of-good-repair needs in the tunnel. In practice, the first phase of the station rebuild shares the calendar with a higher-priority single-track project between Mt. Lebanon and Raleigh Avenue. The tunnel slide doesn't say whether those four-to-five-week periods will line up with the station's single-track year or add separate disruptions. That timing is the main open question for 2027.
The presentation also mentions nearby rail crossing work at Hillsdale and Alabama. Both crossings were to be fully replaced at the same time, with track bed, ties and rail, and finished in poured concrete. That work was scheduled for July and doesn't overlap with the station construction.
What changes on Raleigh Avenue
For neighbors who don't ride the train, the effects are mostly about the street. PRT expects most work to happen in daylight, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The contractor may need street closures, lane restrictions or parking restrictions on Raleigh Avenue between Tolma Avenue and Williams Way.
PRT says affected neighbors will get advance notice of any closure or restriction once construction begins, and a customer service phone number will be set up for construction questions. The number hasn't been published yet, which is expected since no contractor has been hired.
Park-and-ride drivers lose 7 spaces in the final layout. The materials don't say how much of the lot will be used for staging during construction.
Where the schedule stands in October 2026
PRT's project page, in its Summer 2026 update, says the project will go out to bid in fall 2026. The goal is PRT Board approval of a contractor in the winter, with construction starting in spring 2027. The posted drawing set is stamped "Issued for Bid" with a date of March 31, 2026, so the design package has been ready for months. As of October 11, 2026, PRT's open purchasing events page didn't list a Dormont Junction solicitation. Fall bidding is still possible, but the spring 2027 start depends on a bid that hasn't been posted yet.
The project has been in planning for a long time. PRT began the Dormont Junction station area plan with community meetings in 2018. The Post-Gazette notes the agency has been talking about the upgrade "since at least 2018."
PRT says the money is in place. The project is funded through PRT's capital budget, which draws on state and local funds, and that includes $500,000 in congressionally directed community project funding secured by Rep. Chris Deluzio. Two cost figures are in circulation, and they cover different scopes. PRT gives a budget of about $14 million for Dormont Junction and the Station Square project combined, since the two were designed under one contract and PRT is still separating the costs. The Post-Gazette reported an estimate of $6 million for Dormont Junction alone. Neither number is a contract price, and the real cost will be known once bids come in.
The transit-oriented development planned for the PRT and borough parking lots next to the station is a separate effort with its own approval and design process.
Updates will appear on PRT's Dormont Junction project page, which also hosts the May meeting video and the full drawing set. When the bid posts and a contractor is approved, the outage dates and the customer service line should follow.
If you live near Raleigh Avenue and are wondering how a two-year rebuild a few blocks away fits with your own plans for the next few years, Jen Schalk is glad to talk it through. She can help you weigh the construction years against a 2029 finish date. Let's Connect.
