PITTSBURGHERS know their orange cones. Road construction around here is just part of the scenery for much of the year, and last week brought news of more cones to come: Starting next month, the long-anticipated project to upgrade congested Route 28 from the North Side to Millvale will begin at last, at a cost of $120 million. PennDOT District 11 Executive Dan Cessna sounded excited when he told the Post-Gazette's Jon Schmitz: "This is THE project people in the Pittsburgh region have been waiting for. It's here. It's getting started. It's going to take a while. But it's going to happen. When it's done it'll be amazing." That's the good news; the bad news is that it will take four years, and for much of the time outbound traffic will be restricted to one lane and the 31st Street Bridge and Rialto Street will be closed for nearly three years. So while we rejoice in the start of the project, we can't quite bring ourselves to clap our hands together and gleefully shout, "The cones are coming! The cones are coming!"

FIREWORKS have long been a passion for Pittsburghers and if they are not available, the next best thing is a bridge being blown up. On Tuesday, at 10:09 a.m., 200 pounds of explosives sent the Pennsylvania Turnpike's Allegheny River Bridge -- 2,200 feet long with 2,000 tons of steel -- splashing into the river. In its place, twin spans of new bridge will carry three lanes each way when the $193.6 million project is complete. Turnpike CEO Joe Brimmeier, on hand for the demolition, noted that by next year an entire 125-mile stretch of the toll road from Ohio to beyond the Allegheny Tunnel will have been resurfaced or rebuilt. "It's a proud day for the Pennsylvania Turnpike," he said. And for those gathered near Oakmont or watching on TV, it was a fine day for a good explosion.

THE TURNPIKE is about to become more expensive for drivers to use, starting Jan. 2 at 12:01 a.m. The Turnpike Commission approved new toll increases last week, which include a first-ever incentive for users of E-ZPass. Those who pay electronically (almost two-thirds of turnpike users) will pay 3 percent more while cash customers will pay 10 percent more. The turnpike has increased tolls annually since 2009 under Act 44, the 2007 statute that promised to be the answer to the state's transportation funding needs only to hit a roadblock when the federal government refused to allow a major component, tolling I-80. Even when orange cones are not involved, transportation is a sore subject in Pennsylvania.