Traffic advisory: Road work to cause major delays, improve safety on Old Highway 91

Old Highway 91 near the Nevada border, April 21, 2016 | Photo by Julie Applegate, St. George News

ST. GEORGE – Road work underway on Old Highway 91 in western Washington County will cause significant delays and motorists are being advised to use an alternate route.

Route of road construction on old Highway 91 in western Washington County, Utah | Image courtesy of Google Maps | Click image to enlarge

The $1.03 million project runs between the intersection of SR-91 and Gunlock Road, and the Arizona state line near Littlefield, Arizona.

Lane closures and some overnight and other short-term closures are anticipated; traffic delays of 30 minutes or more will be common during the construction.

“Please make your travel plans anticipating these delays and closures,” Washington County Engineer Todd Edwards said in a statement.

“The public is encouraged to use Interstate 15 through the Virgin River Gorge as their main travel way during this period of time to allow the construction crews to work and increase safety in the work zones.”

The project is intended to improve the safety of the 16.7-mile stretch by extending existing culverts and installing new ones, widening road shoulders and cutting back cliffs that are too close to the road. Other safety improvements will include new signs and lane striping.

The project is expected to be completed in July.

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4 Comments

  • Loyal Opposition January 25, 2017 at 8:49 pm

    Because of the construction on I-15 on the bridges over the Virgin River US 91 was suggested as an alternate. Now US 91 is beginning its road construction and suggesting using I-15 as an alternate. It looks to me like the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing. I operate a pilot-car business escorting oversize loads. The Gorge construction was very hurtful to business, but now, finally, it’s open again. It looks like the State of Utah is trying its hardest to keep truck traffic completely out of Washington County again this year by closing both I-15 and US 91 to heavy traffic. Thanks “loads”.

    http://www.stgeorgenews.com/news/archive/2017/01/20/mgk-a-new-year-yields-a-new-i-15-construction-project/#.WIlv0I-cE5g

    • Bender January 25, 2017 at 10:32 pm

      What do you want to happen bub? A third route? Unmaintained and never widened roads and bridges? Wide loads never inconvenienced?

      You living in a fantasy world if you think you got it bad here. Buck up and be glad you ain’t in the 90% of the rest of the world with pure crap road infrastructure. I’m not sure where you could move to in the US and not be inconvenienced by maintenance.

      Here’s a thought. Keep the wide loads off the freeways from 6AM to 10PM. Let your customers know we”ll be doing it this way from now on. Tell ’em Bender said so.

  • mmsandie January 26, 2017 at 8:39 am

    I feel the first comment or was correct.. But 1.3 million is a lot for what little traffic goes thru on rte 91..but when there is an accident in the gorge all the traffic comes thru rte 91….. But also rte 15 bridges near exit 4-6 will be widened..and some roads changed at the same time..the rte 15 project will last a year and rte 91 will last 6 months.. Hope nothing big happens.. I,ve seen traffic back up to mesquite when something happens in the gorge..
    When they built the exchange between exit 4-6 with the overpasses just a few years ago, dude,t they think the bridge would need more than 2 lanes?? It seems they don,t think ahead and growth.. Rte 15 is a major. Rte from LA to Canada..???. When you come off the Dixie dr ramp to get on rte 15 going south, traffic comes from the north and crosses in front of you to go on the Dixie Dr exit.. So dangerous… I,ve been squeezed to the guardrail and not let on rte 15 many times do now I go thru bloomington to get on rte 15 to avoid the mess..good duck with everyone traveling the next 6-12 months on either road going south.

  • bcmontana January 26, 2017 at 11:43 am

    I live in Montana most of the year. Utah has the best road update/maintenance program I have ever seen. This project would take 3 years in Montana!

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