UDOT wants to make US 89 a freeway from I-15 to I-84

Started by Kniwt, August 24, 2017, 07:16:42 PM

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andy3175

http://kutv.com/news/local/utah-drivers-will-soon-have-a-new-freeway-to-drive-on-but-not-everyone-is-happy-about-it

QuoteUnited States Highway 89 in Davis and Weber counties is approved to become a full freeway but faces possible legal action from citizens..

Utah Department of Transportation made the decision because it said with growth, it is needed to reduce possible travel delays. But a group of residents is against the decision and may take legal action.

"I will be hugely affected by the project,"  Glade McCombs, who lives three doors down from US 89 in Fruit Heights said. "That frontage road going right past my house will carry an awful lot of traffic getting onto 89."

He's also part of ReVu89, a grass-roots campaign against UDOT's wishes to transform US 89 into a full freeway. McCombs said the group has multiple concerns including decreasing property values, noise, and privacy concerns with the flyovers.

"Once they elevate the freeway it will be at the height of a two-story house and so a lot of the residents who live along 89 will have cars looking in their second-story bedroom windows,"  he said.

Tuesday, UDOT gave its final approval for the project and will be moving forward with its plans to widen US 89 from four lanes to six, and convert it into a freeway between Shepard Lane in Farmington and Interstate 84 in South Weber.

"By and large it's driving their cars is what people want to do so that spurs us to look for us to provide transportation solutions that will help them get to their destination,"  UDOT's Vic Saunders said.

All traffic lights will be changed to freeway on and off ramps. Final plans will take out 22 structures, one business, a gas station which is already closed, one municipal water tank, and 20 homes, but Saunders said UDOT has been ready for this and UDOT already owns most of those homes.

"Over the years UDOT has acquired many of the properties that were going to be impacted by this future roadway."

UDOT said it will use noise dampening pavements to try to bring down highway noise based on citizens requests. But McCombs said that's just a band-aid on a hemorrhage, speaking as a resident and not a board member for the ReVu89.

"We are just concerned that they are going to take our nice little community and turn our houses which now are very quiet and serene and enjoyable and turn those into a noisy interchange or frontage road,"  he said.

McCombs said he understands there are problems with 89.

"Something has to happen to fix 89, the traffic flow is congested,"  McCombs said. He just thinks it should happen in phases, and he doesn't want to see the flyovers at all. "If they depress the freeway and just have the interchange going direction over 89 it would have a huge less impact by doing the elevated freeways in those interchanges."

ReVu89 has been fighting this proposal and they are not done yet.

"We have contacted an attorney, they think there has been some failure from the viewpoint of planning and UDOT's perspective planning and moving this thing forward and there's some concerns,"  McCombs said.

UDOT said without the project, congestion would increase by 20 to 35 percent on the corridor by 2040, creating peak travel times of one hour from Shepard Lane to I-84. With planned improvements, the same trip is projected to take nine to 10 minutes.

"We have some places that at nighttime traffic doesn't move very quickly. We are talking 10 mph in some places. What we want to do is speed that traffic up get people to where they want to go in a reasonable amount of time. If we don't build this project we won't we be able to see that,"  Saunders said.

Construction on the project is set to start in spring of next year and is expected to be finished by 2021.

"We want to help drivers and motorists get to their final destinations in a reasonable amount of time that will allow them to be with their families and the things they want to do,"  Saunders said.

Regards,
Andy

www.aaroads.com


US 89

The Final SES (State Environmental Study) for the US-89 freeway has been completed. The study can be read here. Also, here is a new interactive map detailing the project plans.

mgk920

Quote from: roadguy2 on March 19, 2018, 08:10:39 PM
The Final SES (State Environmental Study) for the US-89 freeway has been completed. The study can be read here. Also, here is a new interactive map detailing the project plans.

What's the potential of the I-84 interchange someday also being upgraded to a full proper free-flowing freeway-freeway connection?

Mike

US 89

Quote from: mgk920 on March 19, 2018, 08:28:49 PM
Quote from: roadguy2 on March 19, 2018, 08:10:39 PM
The Final SES (State Environmental Study) for the US-89 freeway has been completed. The study can be read here. Also, here is a new interactive map detailing the project plans.

What's the potential of the I-84 interchange someday also being upgraded to a full proper free-flowing freeway-freeway connection?

Mike

Upgrading that interchange to a freeway-system interchange is listed in the area's RTP. However, it is a phase 3 project, which is the time period 2031-2040.

The sad thing is that I found an EIS from 1996 which showed a plan to convert that interchange to a full cloverleaf. Obviously that never happened, and a full cloverleaf is looking unlikely at this point due to the development to the NE and a large gravel pit to the SE.

i-215

Quote from: mgk920 on March 19, 2018, 08:28:49 PM
Quote from: roadguy2 on March 19, 2018, 08:10:39 PM
The Final SES (State Environmental Study) for the US-89 freeway has been completed. The study can be read here. Also, here is a new interactive map detailing the project plans.

What's the potential of the I-84 interchange someday also being upgraded to a full proper free-flowing freeway-freeway connection?

Mike

Yes, it's in the RTP.  Utah won't replace it until traffic volumes "break" it functionally.  Then you'll see it get bumped up to a 3-year timeframe.

If it doesn't break, it could remain in current form for a loooooooooong time.

US 89

Everyone expected it, but now it's official: the ReVU89 group mentioned above has filed a lawsuit.

Link to article in KSL: Residents file lawsuit against US-89 expansion

QuoteThe lawsuit says UDOT didn't follow procedure while studying the potential environmental impacts of the project.

"UDOT impermissibly constrained and restricted the study area for this project to avoid the full review of all regional impacts,"  the complaint reads.

Because the widening project alters interstate highways and connections to federal interstates, the lawsuit argues that UDOT needed a rigorous Environmental Impact Statement instead of just a State Environmental Study.

US 89

This project has sat quiet for a bit as UDOT and its contractors design the road, with construction expected to begin likely in 2020. However, one of the major updates as of late is that alternatives with the freeway under the cross street are now being considered. I'd imagine this is UDOT "throwing a bone" to the NIMBYs and environmentalists who are opposing this. Hopefully the speed limit can still be 65.

Here's a rendering of the current design for the Oak Hills Drive (SR 109) interchange:



Designs available online here: http://www.udot.utah.gov/us89/index.php/right-of-way/

US 89

Some new interchange designs are out, including:

200 North interchange:


Gordon Ave interchange:


Nicholls Rd overpass:


Crestwood Rd overpass:

sparker

^^^^^^^^^
With all the design changes as shown above, is the I-84/US 89 interchange still planned as a non-free-flowing facility with signalized movements, or has that also been upgraded?   

US 89

Quote from: sparker on April 24, 2019, 07:22:30 PM
^^^^^^^^^
With all the design changes as shown above, is the I-84/US 89 interchange still planned as a non-free-flowing facility with signalized movements, or has that also been upgraded?

Unfortunately, this project does not include any modifications to the Uintah interchange, aside from maybe some minor work on US 89 itself. As mentioned above, an upgrade of that interchange is in the area's RTP, but it appears to have been pushed back to a phase 4 (beyond 2040) project. Which is odd, because that same RTP has a US 89 freeway upgrade between I-84 and Harrison Blvd in Ogden as a phase 2 (2025-2034) project.

US 89

UDOT is doing a survey where the public gets to help decide some of the aesthetic features for the project. The survey includes a poll on bridge beam paint color, decorative bridge design, and retaining wall stone pattern:

https://us89.from-ut.com/survey

US 89

From a recent email update regarding this project:

Quote from: Fall 2019 Project UpdateMajor roadway construction is anticipated to begin after the first of next year. The project team is finalizing the design and construction schedule. The team continues to develop ways to best maintain two lanes in each direction while completing the necessary work. This process includes ongoing refinement of the construction phasing and traffic planning, which also drives the project schedule. So, more details will be shared as they are confirmed later this year.

Perhaps more interesting is an agenda item on this month's state transportation commission meeting, which will transfer $2.5 million to this project to rehabilitate the I-84 bridge decks over US 89. Not all that notable by itself, but the item comes with this description:

QuoteAfter this Uintah Interchange project was approved and funding was programmed, Region One completed a study with plans for a future Interchange configuration that will replace the existing bridge at the mouth of Weber Canyon. The future interchange configuration is needed to accommodate the expected growth and needs of this location. To address the immediate need on the Uintah Interchange, pothole patching and a polymer overlay bridge decks was placed this past summer to preserve them until a future project can be funded. The Region will look for funding within its long range plan and program at a future date.

So UDOT does plan to upgrade the 84/89 interchange. I'd love to see the proposed design, but I haven't been able to find the study or any other diagrams online, and the US-89 project design map doesn't show it either.

US 89

Got an email update this morning announcing the start of this project, along with a proposed construction phasing map:

QuotePreparatory work begins this week and includes setup of a construction yard inside the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) property on the west side of 200 North. Tree and shrub removal, fence removal and other clearing activities along the west side of U.S. 89 are planned to begin as early as January 13 near 200 North.

In order to streamline construction, utility relocation will occur in advance of work on the mainline of U.S. 89. There are 35 different utility owners on or next to U.S. 89 and the project team will relocate over 150 miles of utilities to facilitate project construction.

During early work, motorists can expect shoulder or lane closures on the frontage roads and/or side streets during non-commute times. No impacts to U.S. 89 traffic are anticipated until later in the spring.


The Ghostbuster

If this were Texas or North Carolina, I'd expect them to slap an Interstate designation along this corridor, such as Interstate 415, or Interstate 284. I highly doubt Utah has any interest in going that route, and will keep the road US 89, which is the only designation the roadway should have.

Rover_0

Quote from: The Ghostbuster on January 09, 2020, 06:24:43 PM
If this were Texas or North Carolina, I'd expect them to slap an Interstate designation along this corridor, such as Interstate 415, or Interstate 284. I highly doubt Utah has any interest in going that route, and will keep the road US 89, which is the only designation the roadway should have.

I always thought that if this corridor were to get an Interstate number, it would be either I-115 or I-184. But you're right–I don't think that Utah has any interest in slapping an Interstate number on the route, as there's no real need to.
Fixing erroneous shields, one at a time...

sparker

Quote from: Rover_0 on January 09, 2020, 11:59:03 PM
Quote from: The Ghostbuster on January 09, 2020, 06:24:43 PM
If this were Texas or North Carolina, I'd expect them to slap an Interstate designation along this corridor, such as Interstate 415, or Interstate 284. I highly doubt Utah has any interest in going that route, and will keep the road US 89, which is the only designation the roadway should have.

I always thought that if this corridor were to get an Interstate number, it would be either I-115 or I-184. But you're right–I don't think that Utah has any interest in slapping an Interstate number on the route, as there's no real need to.

Quite right; US 89 is simply a local server, not a "shortcut" from NB 15 to EB 84 or vice-versa; that task is already accomplished by I-80.  Adding an Interstate designation would be gratuitous; Utah -- so far -- has resisted that particular siren call.

US 89

Looks like major construction will officially begin this March, lasting until potentially through 2023:

QuoteImpacts to U.S. 89 are anticipated to begin in March and extend through 2023. We know you have a lot of questions about impacts to your area. In addition to the information below, we have posted early construction phasing information for commuters and the first three areas of focus on this online construction kickoff site. More construction schedule and impact information will be provided as work gets underway.

QuoteThe project team has developed an accelerated schedule to complete the more than nine miles of U.S. 89 mainline reconstruction and all six bridges/interchanges by 2023. In order to complete this massive amount of work, while keeping traffic moving on U.S. 89, the work will be phased.

Work in 2020 is planned along the East frontage road from Layton to Fruit Heights, and at the new interchange locations at Oak Hills Drive, Gordon Avenue and 200 North/400 North. Please see the anticipated phasing schedule and map below for more details.


US 89

Unrelated to the Davis County freeway upgrade, but a study has recently been completed for the portion of Highway 89 from the I-84 interchange to Harrison Blvd. This is an especially complicated area due to a confluence of factors such as the Weber River, gravel pits, the UP railroad line, steep grades on 89 north of 84, and nearby at-grade intersections. It also gets messy because the coming upgrades to 89 south of 84 will overwhelm the 89/84 interchange, and then any upgrades to that would overwhelm the Skyline and Harrison intersections further north on 89.

Reading through the study, it appears two short-term solutions have been proposed - one for the I-84 interchange and one for the Skyline intersection. It looks like UDOT plans to upgrade the Skyline intersection to a four-leg CFI, while the I-84 interchange would be converted to a SPUI with an extra lane added on 89 through the interchange. Personally I hate freeways that end at SPUIs, but this seems to be somewhat of a Utah thing as there are already three examples of this in the state.

There are a couple of long-term solutions proposed, but reading the study it seems the most likely solution is the Center Bypass, which would build a free-flowing through routing for US 89 below grade and add freeway ramps for most of the 89/84 ramps, while keeping the SPUI from the short-term phase. A couple options exist for the Skyline intersection, but one possibility is for that to eventually become a "braided SPUI" with a free-flowing ramp from the 89 freeway to northbound Harrison.

US 89

UDOT recently posted a time-lapse of bridge beams being placed for the new Gordon Avenue interchange:


US 89

From the Ogden Standard-Examiner: UDOT adds $60 million worth of new work to its ongoing reconstruction of U.S. 89

QuoteUINTAH – The Utah Department of Transportation has added a significant amount of new work and money to its ongoing reconstruction of U.S. 89 in Northern Utah.

On Friday, the Utah Transportation Commission approved a UDOT request to add $60 million to the project, bringing the total value of the work up to $555 million.

Scheduled to be completed in 2023, UDOT had planned to rebuild U.S. 89 and widen the highway to six lanes from Main Street in Farmington to State Road 193 in Layton. As part of the project, four new interchanges are being built at 200 North, Oak Hills Drive, Gordon Avenue and Antelope Drive in Layton. Gordon Avenue will be extended approximately three miles east, connecting to the highway, and the state will add two new bridges over the highway at Nicholls Road and Crestwood Road.

UDOT's director of financial programming, Ivan Hartle, said the original scope for the project stopped short of the Interstate 84 junction in Uintah, mainly due to funding constraints. But, Hartle said, the state has heard from a vocal public about concerns of current and future traffic backup at the I-84 interchange if something isn't done soon to address it.

Hartle said that in response to the concerns, UDOT did some additional traffic analysis and has confirmed that traffic near the interchange on U.S. 89 can back up for more than a mile on the northbound section of the highway during peak evening commuting times.

"(And) this delay is only anticipated to increase with the completion of the U.S. 89 reconstruction project,"  Hartle said.

As part of the new work, UDOT will take the current U.S. 89 extension north to the I-84 junction near Weber Canyon, will build a new interchange at the junction with new on- and off-ramps, and will rebuild the I-84 bridge over the Weber River.

"This is a really critical need,"  said Utah Transportation Commissioner Wayne Barlow, who represents Box Elder, Cache, Davis, Morgan, Weber and Rich counties.

UDOT Deputy Director Teri Newell said the additional work on U.S. 89 is necessary to "make the project whole."

"While it's a large amount that we're adding at this point, it's because we are programming out our money for some time,"  Newell said. "This is important to get the correct scope on this."

The ongoing work on U.S. 89 through Davis County is the largest active highway project in the state, according to a UDOT press release. By the time the project is finished in 2023, the state will have spent four years on the project. UDOT spokesman John Gleason told the Standard-Examiner that the project, which includes eliminating stop lights and cross traffic, will accommodate the anticipated traffic growth in the area through 2040 and beyond.

It looks like the website hasn't been updated with the new plans yet, but this is great to see. The 84/89 interchange does in fact suck with modern US 89 traffic levels, and it was probably the #1 issue raised in UDOT's Facebook group for the project. (Side note: there are a LOT of people in those groups who are definitely not road enthusiasts.)

Wonder if this will bump up the timeline for improvements on 89 further north at Skyline and Harrison.

abqtraveler

Quote from: andy3175 on March 17, 2018, 12:13:00 AM
http://kutv.com/news/local/utah-drivers-will-soon-have-a-new-freeway-to-drive-on-but-not-everyone-is-happy-about-it


What are the prospects of this section of US-89 receiving an interstate designation after it has been converted to a freeway? Is that something being discussed?
2-d Interstates traveled:  4, 5, 8, 10, 15, 20, 24, 25, 27, 29, 35, 39, 40, 41, 43, 45, 49, 55, 57, 64, 65, 66, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75, 76(E), 77, 78, 81, 83, 84(W), 85, 87(N), 89, 90, 91, 93, 94, 95

2-d Interstates Clinched:  12, 22, 30, 37, 44, 59, 80, 84(E), 86(E), 238, H1, H2, H3, H201

BigManFromAFRICA88

Quote from: abqtraveler on May 10, 2021, 09:29:10 AM
Quote from: andy3175 on March 17, 2018, 12:13:00 AM
http://kutv.com/news/local/utah-drivers-will-soon-have-a-new-freeway-to-drive-on-but-not-everyone-is-happy-about-it


What are the prospects of this section of US-89 receiving an interstate designation after it has been converted to a freeway? Is that something being discussed?

Most likely slim to none. Utah isn't really an interstate highway crazy state; both Mountain View and West Davis Corridors are getting state route numbers, and there are plenty of freeways donning US highway badges anyway. Plus US 89 is a pretty important whole-state number, and painting over it with an interstate designation would be rather useless in the end based on name value --- I'd bank everyone in Davis and Weber counties knows what US 89 is.

The Ghostbuster

If you had your way, what Interstate designation would you give the US 89 corridor, abqtraveler?

US 89

Quote from: BigManFromAFRICA88 on May 10, 2021, 05:13:58 PM
Quote from: abqtraveler on May 10, 2021, 09:29:10 AM
Quote from: andy3175 on March 17, 2018, 12:13:00 AM
http://kutv.com/news/local/utah-drivers-will-soon-have-a-new-freeway-to-drive-on-but-not-everyone-is-happy-about-it


What are the prospects of this section of US-89 receiving an interstate designation after it has been converted to a freeway? Is that something being discussed?

Most likely slim to none. Utah isn't really an interstate highway crazy state; both Mountain View and West Davis Corridors are getting state route numbers, and there are plenty of freeways donning US highway badges anyway. Plus US 89 is a pretty important whole-state number, and painting over it with an interstate designation would be rather useless in the end based on name value --- I'd bank everyone in Davis and Weber counties knows what US 89 is.

Agreed - if for some reason UDOT were to get an interstate designation for this, everyone would still call it US 89 and you'd get a situation like I-64/US 40 in St Louis.

Plus, unless plans have changed and I haven't seen them yet, the interchange with I-84 will continue to have at-grade intersections after the reconstruction, so an interstate designation wouldn't really be appropriate. Unless you wanted to create something like I-585 SC, where the interstate designation ends right before junctioning the other interstate... which just doesn't seem right.

US 89

Finally tracked down the agenda item for the $60m addition from last month's transportation commission meeting: https://utahdot.granicus.com/MetaViewer.php?view_id=2&event_id=243&meta_id=30305 (rather large PDF - pages 1-2)

QuoteThe original scope for the US-89 project stopped short of the I-84 interchange due to funding constraints. The public has been very vocal about concerns of current and future traffic backup at the interchange at I-84. In response to the concerns, UDOT has done additional traffic analysis and has confirmed that the traffic can back up for more than a mile on Northbound US-89 during the PM peak and add
more than 5 minutes of delay to commuters. This delay is only anticipated to increase with the completion of the US-89 reconstruct project.

The additional scope proposes to add a new SPUI (Single Point Urban Interchange) at the I-84 / US-89 junction. New on and off ramps will be built to provide better sight distance, standard deceleration and acceleration lengths and improved storage. The bridge on I-84 over the Weber River will also be reconstructed as part of this project.

So it appears they are indeed converting the existing partial cloverleaf to a SPUI. Personally not a fan of that, but the geometry on some of those existing ramps does suck (particularly the ramp onto westbound 84) and definitely could use some improvement.



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