JACKSON, Wyo. — On Tuesday, June 25, crews were almost done building a temporary route around a landslide that shut down a portion of Wyoming Highway 22, a vital road for thousands of workers in a western resort town.
Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) officials were eyeing Friday to reopen the temporary route. The road over Teton Pass near the Idaho state line has been closed since the landslide sent both lanes crashing into a deep ravine on June 8.
No one was hurt when the pavement gave way. The road was already closed because another landslide had washed mud and debris across the road nearby.
However, the collapse was a big headache for thousands of drivers. Many people work in Jackson — a ski and tourism hub at the doorstep of Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks where the average home costs millions — and live in more affordable eastern Idaho.
Because of the road collapse, workers have been following a different route, adding over an hour to their commute each way.
Vehicles will need to slow down through the temporary section to 20 mph but won’t have to stop, said Bob Hammond, an engineer with WYDOT. The two paved lanes will span 600-700 feet.
“We have a steeper grade, which really isn’t that big of a problem. But the turns are a little tighter,” Hammond said during a news media site tour Tuesday.
A permanent fix costing perhaps upward of $20 million will take longer, Hammond said.
The U.S. Federal Highway Administration earlier this month allocated $6 million in emergency relief funds to help offset the cost of repairing the highway.
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