Last chance to comment on proposed upgrades to US 89/I-84 interchange
Jan 4, 2024, 3:00 PM | Updated: May 29, 2024, 4:14 pm
Traffic moves on U.S. 89 and Antelope Drive in Layton on Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2022. (Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News)
(Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News)
SOUTH WEBER, Utah — Thursday is the final chance for people to voice how they feel about a major proposed project for the U.S. 89 and I-84 interchange on the Weber County line.
Utah Department of Transportation Spokesperson Mitch Shaw told KSL NewsRadio they want to streamline traffic directly from Highway 89 to South Ogden. To do that, they’d use bridges and a corridor that goes around 89 from South Weber Drive to just south of Skyline Drive.
“It’s an important follow-up to what we’ve already done on Highway 89. It’s something that we need to get done,” he said.
UDOT completed a massive project in June that turned U.S. 89 into a freeway between Farmington and South Weber.
Improving driving conditions
Today, drivers still have to stop at red lights around the I-84 ramps. Shaw said they want to combat the congestion that tends to build up there by streamlining U.S. 89 commuters from the local traffic.
“This is kind of another essential piece… that we need to do to make sure that people are able to get where they’re going,” Shaw said.
UDOT’s proposed plan would widen South Weber Drive to Harrison Boulevard. But it would leave the lights and existing road in place for local drivers.
The plan would also update the ramps to I-84 and connect some bike paths.
“It would be the best of both worlds. It would improve driving conditions for the local traffic and then commuters who just want to get past I-84 and continue on to Highway 89,” Shaw said.
The project is still undergoing an environmental study, but Shaw said they’d likely have their final proposal ready to go public sometime this spring.
While the price tag could change, the preliminary estimate for the project is around $700 million, just $50 million shy of the entire cost to build the West Davis Corridor.
Anyone wishing to leave a comment about the project can do so on UDOT’s website. Comments must be submitted by Thursday.
