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SPRINGDALE — It's been nearly 40 years since the section of road leading up to the entrance of Zion National Park has seen a major overhaul.
With millions of tourists each year, many arriving in large tour buses, engineers say the road is in desperate need of repair.
“We'll have to have flagging on the project through Springdale, which is going to be a single lane in each direction," said Kevin Kitchen of the Utah Department of Transportation.
UDOT said a six-mile stretch of State Route 9 from Rockville to the entrance of Zion National Park needs to either be resurfaced or completely rebuilt.
“As we come into Springdale itself we've got to go through and reconstruct the road,” Kitchen said. “This will give us the structure we need for several years to come and also give us the ability to push those bike lanes through to Zion National Park."
UDOT crews will be careful to save the historic, sandstone-lined irrigation ditches. Something that won't be saved: the red colored pavement. UDOT said the red material is going away because it doesn't last long enough.
The major construction project not only means delays for motorists but a potential slowdown for local businesses.
“This is a complex one with Springdale. Obviously we've got the visitation at the park,” Kitchen said. “A lot of people come through in a big long chain of cars. One of the concerns that we have is how we'll be able to make sure that businesses get their deliveries and so forth."
"The payoff will definitely be worth it," said Springdale mayor and hotel owner Stan Smith.
The bulk of the work for the $10 million project is planned for 2017, but Smith said residents are already preparing.
“They understand that something has to be done; nobody's excited about it,” Smith said. “We know it's going to be disrupting but we also know once it's done, it's going be a fantastic road for the next 40 to 50 years.”
UDOT is trying to be sensitive of the impact this project will have on tourists and business owners. Instead of completing the construction all at once, the plan now is to avoid the peak summer season and split the project into two phases and perform the work mostly in the winter months.
