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LEHI -- Road construction season is under way and residents of Lehi are finding themselves at what may be this year's epicenter.
Six Utah Department of Transportation projects impact 15 to 17 miles of road through the Utah County city: Pioneer Crossing, SR 92, 2100 North, Interstate 15 repaving between Main Street and 1200 West, the I-15 Core and electronic tolling installation.
Drivers like Jerry Allen say all the construction is crazy.
"I go down to Manti about every other week to get my daughter and I don't know how it's going to work out," Allen says. "I'm probably going to have to leave 45 minutes extra early to just go get her."
Mark Glodowski calls it "frustrating," saying he already has to take a long detour to worship.
"Just to go to church I have to go all the way around," Glodowski says. He says the drive now takes 10 minutes instead of just 30 seconds.
UDOT is trying to ease nerves by pointing to the future.
"Utah County has grown tremendously and we see continued growth into the next 10, 20, 30 years," spokesman Scott Thompson says. "These roads are going to be needed as the population continues to grow here. There will be some short-term inconveniences, but there will be long-term benefit in the end."
UDOT spokesman Adan Carillo says, in general, there are fewer road projects this year than last year's record number. He says the projects this year are larger, meaning there may still be more orange barrels, even if they are more centralized.
Thompson expects the Pioneer Crossing project to be completed later this summer or early this fall. SR 92 should be done by 2011, while 2100 North is set for completion in 2011 or 2012.
He says the I-15 Core project should be complete by December 2012, although it will wrap up in the north end of Utah County closer to July of the same year.
E-mail: aadams@ksl.com
