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SARATOGA SPRINGS -- A road widening project in Saratoga Springs left thousands of angry motorists waiting in their cars for up to an hour at times to get through an intersection.
The intersection of Redwood Road and State Route 73-- commonly called the four corners-- is the major entryway to the majority of Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain.
Construction contractors were repaving part of the road, but UDOT's Adan Carrillo told KSL Newsradio it took longer than anticipated, which caused some of the work to continue during the start of rush hour.
"Once they started this paving operation, at that point they realized they couldn't just leave it there. They needed to make sure it was a safe environment for the people traveling through the area," said Carrillo.
Trucks carrying materials to the construction work also were caught up in the traffic mess, which added even more delays.
"It was a one-time incident. It was an isolated incident. We took it very seriously. Every time backups like these happen we go back and take a look at what happened to make sure it doesn't happen again, and it will not happen again," said Carrillo.
He said because of the cooling temperatures at night this type of asphalt needed to be poured during the day.
He said construction crews would be back at the intersection Thursday, but they will make sure there will not be paving work going on during rush hour.
E-mail: rjeppesen@ksl.com
