Crews are using heavy equipment to remove very large boulders, some the size of cars, from certain points on the road shoulders to allow for improvements to road safety. The road improvement project is funded by the U.S. Forest Service, but the project is administered by the Iron County Engineer’s Office, with the work being completed by local contractors. This phase of the project follows the completion of the new Bowery Creek Bridge, which was installed in 2011.
Iron County has requested from the Forest Service an extension of the road closure in order to finish the work being done with excavators, backhoes, and dump trucks that are moving to, from, and within various construction sites on the road. The work is in areas of limited site distance on steep, narrow, and winding sections of the road. Heavy equipment will take up the entire width of the road during this work, rendering it unsafe for travel by the general public until after this phase of the project has been completed.
“The safety of employees and visitors to the Dixie National Forest remains our number one priority,” said Cedar City District Ranger Veronica Magnuson. “The road to Yankee Meadow Reservoir will be open during weekends through the spring. The weekday closure may cause temporary inconvenience to some Forest users until this heavy work is completed, but the road will be open for travel well before the Memorial Day weekend, the traditional start of the recreation season.”
Closure barricades are in place during the construction period on weekdays, but removed during weekends until mid-May. After the road has re-opened, resurfacing work will continue into the summer months. Restricted lane travel and temporary delays can be expected by visitors until the project is completed.
For more information on the temporary closure, please contact the Cedar City Ranger District at (435) 865-3200.
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