Provo River bridge reconstruction to begin this fall; funding for freeway interchange project reallocated
-
- The Provo River Bridge at 820 North and 850 West is shown Wednesday, July 2, 2025.
-
- The bridge above the Provo River Trail at the intersection of 820 North and 850 West is pictured Tuesday, May 21, 2024.
-
- The Provo River sits below a bridge at 820 North and 820 West in Provo on Wednesday, July 2, 2025.
Work to replace the 65-year-old Provo River Bridge at 820 North and 850 West is on track to potentially start this fall, as the city and transportation officials look to prioritize more pressing road and infrastructure projects.
On Friday, the Utah Transportation Commission voted to divert $2.9 million away from the Provo North I-15 Interchange Study toward other urgent traffic needs.
The Interstate 15 improvement project started in 2019, and initially was slated to happen in two phases. The first, an interchange study examining a 3-mile radius from Center Street in Provo to University Parkway in Orem focused on travel demand and traffic modeling, which was completed in 2020.
Phase 2 included the preparation of an environmental impact statement based on data that was collected.
However, the second phase was never conducted.
Rob Clayton, Region 3 director for the Utah Department of Transportation, worked closely with Provo City officials to determine whether to continue with the project or put it on pause.
“This environmental study was prioritized in the long-range plan at the time that it was initiated; and since then, it’s been moved to Phase 2, and other higher priorities have emerged in the county,” Clayton said during Friday’s commission meeting. “It just makes sense to do this work at a later date”
According to Vern Kessler, Provo City traffic manager, the interchange study hit a snag due to the Mountainland Association of Governments’ regional transportation plan, which calls for a new freeway interchange sometime in the future.
The Provo North I-15 interchange study started with a budget of $4.4 million as part of UDOT’s Transportation Investment Fund. The first phase used $1.1 million of that sum, leaving $2.9 million remaining.
“And so that kind of goes back into the TIF funding pot for UDOT,” Kessler said.
The Provo North I-15 improvement project isn’t completely off the table and will likely be revisited sometime in the next decade — but for now, the funds will be diverted elsewhere.
The city issued a press release Tuesday expressing Mayor Michelle Kaufusi’s pleasure with the commission’s decision and suggesting alternative ways to use the $2.9 million.
“I commend the UDOT team on their decision to redirect the funds to a higher community priority,” Kaufusi said in the statement. “In deciding how these funds will now be spent, I would urge you to consider using them to advance the Geneva Road project, whether by starting improvements or by refreshing that environmental study, as professionals may deem appropriate.”
Kaufusi also highlighted the efforts of Provo City Public Works and the numerous public meetings held regarding the dilapidated 820 North bridge.
“Replacing the bridge is an immediate safety concern that Provo is ready to pursue,” she stated. “The removal of the Interchange Study is positive, as this is not a project that would get underway for perhaps 10-20 years, so this provides the pause necessary to consider the path forward carefully.”
Bridge to the future
As the Daily Herald reported last year, the city announced plans to rebuild the bridge at 820 North, citing aging infrastructure and that it no longer meets the needs for active transportation.
A total of $12 million in Provo sales tax funds was allocated to the project two years ago, specifically for bridge reconstruction.
David Michelsen, a project engineer with Provo City, told the Daily Herald on Wednesday that the design phase of the plan was recently completed. It’s expected to go out to bid next week, with the hopes of having a contractor on board by mid-August.
If all goes according to schedule, Mickelson said construction should start sometime in October and persist through the winter.
“We’re anticipating that it will be wrapped up probably in June of next year, which will be eight or nine months,” he said.
Michelsen said rebuilding the bridge at 820 North will address its current structural deficiencies, improve the line of sight against vehicles, widen sidewalks and widen the Provo River Trail for safer, more convenient access.
“If you’ve ever been a pedestrian and walked across that bridge, you’ll know that it’s just insufficient for pedestrians,” he said.
Other improvements include ensuring compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act for the undercrossing on the east side of the bridge.
Michelsen noted that aside from the bridge, there aren’t any immediate plans to widen other parts of 800 North, which has been a concern among nearby residents.
“As far as we’re concerned, and what we see is with our modeling, that doesn’t look like it’s justified for a number of years,” Michelsen told the Daily Herald. “So we don’t have any current plans of widening along 800 North.”
Once construction work begins, road closures along with 800 North will be in place, with several posted detours in the area that city officials advise people to obey.
“Follow the detour routes when we get them up and running,” Provo Public Works Director Gordon Haight said. “That’s always a big thing. We want our contractors and all modes of traffic to be safe.”
Citizens can follow along as the Provo River Bridge & Trail Project progresses by visiting provoriverbridge.com.
