Date: August 13, 2009
Contact: Amy Vanderbilt, 406-888-5838
Contact: Wade Muehlhof, 406-888-7895
WEST GLACIER, MONT. – The nighttime traffic delays on Glacier National Park’s Going-to-the-Sun Road (Sun Road) will be expanded to the Loop to allow crews to prepare the stretch of road from Crystal Point to Haystack for paving in September. Starting Monday, August 17, 2009, the Sun Road will be temporarily closed to through vehicle traffic for up to four hours between the Loop and the west side of Logan Pass, Monday through Thursday, from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., and from 2:15 a.m. to 6 a.m.
Night work is also underway to rehabilitate the Sun Road between Big Bend and Logan Pass. The construction project on 2.84 miles of the Sun Road between Big Bend and Logan Pass is being done by HK Contractors, Inc. of Idaho Falls.
The project includes work on the stone masonry guard-walls and retaining walls, compaction grouting used to stabilize the subgrade, drainage improvements, slope stabilization, turnout improvements, roadbed improvements and paving. This portion of work is project is projected to be completed by October 31, 2011.
Another segment of Going-to-the-Sun Road rehabilitation will start this fall following the midnight September 20 vehicular traffic closure of the road between Avalanche and the west side of the Logan Pass area. The November storm of 2006 caused an extensive slide directly off the shoulder of the Sun Road on McDonald Creek approximately 19 miles northeast of West Glacier. The repair work will be done by HK Contractors, Inc. for $329,000. During this period, work will also accelerate on the Big Bend to Logan Pass contract. Logan Pass will be accessible from the St. Mary entrance.
Current road status is available at: https://www.nps.gov/applications/glac/roadstatus/roadstatus.cfm. Information is updated as conditions change. Visitors can also phone 406-888-7800 for general park information, including the specific location of hiker/bicycle closures. Road conditions for Glacier National Park are available by calling 511, the Montana Department of Transportation Traveler Information System. If a phone does not support 511, call 800-226-7623. Both numbers are toll-free. Select “Glacier Park Tourist Information” (option # 5) from the menu to hear Glacier’s road report.
- NPS -
