Motorists in Tooele County will need to prepare for overnight closures on Interstate 80 as work continues on the state Route 36 interchange, a state agency announced Tuesday.
On Monday, westbound I-80 will be completely closed from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. at exit 99, with all traffic detoured onto SR-36, then through Grantsville City via state Route 138, according to the Utah Department of Transportation.
During the closure Monday, eastbound traffic will remain open and unimpeded.
Then on Tuesday, eastbound I-80 near the overpass bridge will be closed from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., with traffic detoured to the SR-36 off-ramp, then reconnecting to I-80 via the on-ramp at exit 99.
While work will continue on Wednesday, I-80 will be open in both directions, according to UDOT. There will be “minimal” traffic impacts due to rolling slowdowns in both directions.
The construction of a new overpass bridge at the SR-36 interchange is part of a UDOT project to reconstruct three bridges along I-80, including two railroad overpass bridges near Black Rock.
The replacement project for the three bridges has a price tag of $30 million, according to UDOT. The initial work on the exit 99 overpass began last spring but had been on hold for several months while the earthen support for the ramp settled.
By mid-March, preliminary work and activities will begin on the railroad lines under the I-80 overpass bridges, according to Courtney Samuel, UDOT Region 2 communication manager. After a temporary bridge is constructed alongside the existing overpass bridges, eastbound I-80 traffic will be diverted to the structure while the westbound bridge is demolished and replaced.
Traffic will be moved to the newly constructed bridge while the eastbound bridge is demolished and replaced, Samuel said. At the same time, around late summer, the SR-36 interchange bridge will be completed.
Work on the second railroad overpass bridge is expected to be done by December, according to Samuel. There will be intermittent weekend closures during construction and all changes in traffic pattern will be announced by UDOT.