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NORTHERN UTAH -- In the next few weeks, six bridges will be replaced in several counties. The Utah Department of Transportation says it's making sure to replace the bridges as fast and efficiently as possible so it doesn't affect drivers too much.
"What used to take months to do, we're doing in less than 24 hours," said Jason Davis, deputy director of UDOT's Region 2.
In five and a half weeks, six old bridges in Summit, Utah, Davis, and Salt Lake counties will be replaced. The first closure will be at the beginning of next week: westbound Interstate-80 will be closed at the Echo interchange. Crews will have the job done in 16 hours.
"It's pretty amazing how we've gone from closures for weeks to months, to build the bridges in less than 24 hours," Davis said.
Later in October, expect I-80 eastbound from State Street to 2300 East in Salt Lake County to be closed while crews replace these bridges.
"Every location is different," Davis said. "This bridge (between State Street and 2300 East), we'll demo in the middle and slide the brand new bridge into place by using a hydraulic jack."
Perhaps the biggest project is the new interchange on Main Street in American Fork.
"We're taking out the old bridge and replacing it with two other bridges," explained UDOT spokesman Scott Thompson.
The new interchange will be unlike any other in the state. It's a design used in Europe that will keep traffic flowing.
"It has two traffic signals. It limits the number of signals you need to get through the interchange," Thompson said.
It might be a pain adjusting your route to avoid the closures, but UDOT says once the old bridges--some 60 years old--are gone, you're ride will be smoother and safer. [CLICK HERE for a complete list of planned bridge replacement closures]
E-mail: abutterfield@ksl.com
