Posted on 01/10/2014 8:14:28 AM PST by Utah Binger
KANAB, UT – The Utah Department of Transportation is urging motorists to plan ahead for daily three-hour closures of U.S. Highway 89 immediately north of Kanab beginning Wednesday.
UDOT will completely close three miles of the highway in both directions, from Kanab north to the Kanab Creek Bridge, Mondays through Fridays from 8:30-11:30 a.m. until approximately April 11.
The highway will be open to single lane traffic for the remaining 21 hours each day and also open on weekends.
Depending on a driver’s origin and destination, suitable detours could take as much time as waiting; so the Kane County Office of Tourism, community volunteers, and local businesses will be offering some extra hospitality to travelers willing to wait it out.
Initial construction work will be squeezed into an environmentally sensitive area between steep rock cliffs and the eroding creek bank. The $9.8 million Kanab to Kanab Creek Bridge reconstruction project is designed to improve safety and preserve the road for another 20 years by slightly adjusting the alignment, widening shoulders and constructing an acceleration lane at the port of entry.
Engineers planned the winter construction schedule to safeguard the local economy by avoiding interference with the main tourist season. By excavating rock during a season of lower traffic volume, workers hope to safely move traffic when the road is open, keep the work zone safe, and maintain steady production rates so paving can begin when temperatures are sufficiently warm in the spring.
Due to the dangers associated with blasting, potential rockfall and heavy equipment operations, UDOT urges off-road vehicle operators and hikers to stay clear of the area.
ATTENTION SOUTHERN UTAH TRAVELERS ON HIGHWAY 89
If you are traveling south on Highway 89 and arrive north of the closure We will offer free coffee at the headquarters of the Thunderbird Foundation.as you wait for the road to open at about noon. We are at mile marker 83-84.
Highway 89 Closure Alert
Is your highway department being trained by PENNDOT?
We drove through there a few years ago. The scenery is stunning. I think the town of Kanab was the model for Radiator Springs in the movie “Cars.”
Thanks for posting this — I will definitely stay away — 1500 miles away.
Someone check Chris Christies emails on this one!
Thanks for the news.
As a former resident of the North Rim, I can nly imagine the nightmares.
Good time to make ‘lemon ade’ and take advatage of the situation.
(Keep your eyes open for George Hayduke)
Yes, they made lots of films in Kanab.
Lucky for y’all it’s not going to last long. Think about the folks who want to use US89 south of Page, AZ.
There is no timetable for repair of the landslide damage.
Maybe I can put up a roadblock north of here and send all the traffic up over the Glendale Bench toward Johnson Canyon. Got any cones I can borrow?
We take 89A towards the North Rim and then veer off at Jacob Lake toward Lee's Ferry. Course you miss Page altogether but Cliff Dwellers is a nice place for lunch.
Just checked out some photos...that is one hell of a mess.
Looks like earthquake damage. A big mess.
Should be able to find all the cones you need right there on the counsructions site.
It’s not like they’re anchored in the ground like those survey stakes that are so hard to pull up at toss away.
Kanab has the nicest Independence Day celebration in the park.
The pic of the crack in the slope beneath US 89 is reminiscent of the one that opened under the speeding train in the first 'Superman' movie...guess it CAN happen in 'real life'.
I’ll have to visit one of these days.
Work keeps me stuck down here on the border.
good one.
Why didn't Christi stop the road block the first he heard of it? People were screaming for days. And you know HOW those NYer’s can scream...
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