Photo: Utah Department of Transportation
SCIPIO – The Utah Department of Transportation says it won’t happen again. Officials say construction projects were done on I-15 when they probably shouldn’t have this weekend, causing big headaches for drivers coming home after UEA Weekend.
There were plenty of complaints that came in to KSL. Some frustrated drivers say it took two hours to get through the lane restrictions on I-15 near Scipio, then there were reportedly more delays near Nephi. Utah Department of Transportation Spokesman John Gleason says panels on the freeway needed to be replaced, and it had to be done before the winter. “It’s work that needed to be done, but, it should have been done on a different weekend where you didn’t have as many people out there that were coming back from a major travel holiday,” Gleason says.
They normally avoid doing it on holiday weekends, and Gleason says they’re trying to learn why that was overlooked this time. “From a public impact decision, there are much better weekends that this that could have been selected to do this kind of work.”
These restrictions may have been even more frustrating for people driving by them, since the crews were gone to let the new concrete cure. Gleason says it may have appeared to some that no work was being done, at all. “That may have been a frustrating sight to see lanes closed and not see workers out there,” he adds.