Provo schedules August start for 820 North river bridge; detours, ADA access planned

Provo City engineers said the Provo River bridge replacement and roadway work at 820 North will be advertised for bid in May and is expected to begin construction in August after completion of environmental review with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

David Middleton, Provo City Engineering, told the Transportation and Mobility Advisory Committee that design is about 90% complete and staff are preparing required documents for the Corps’ environmental review. “We are a little bit behind of where we wanted to be,” Middleton said, and added that staff expect to bid the project in May and anticipate construction to start in August after the local June 2 to July 31 spawn season ends.

The city plans to route motor traffic onto 500 North and use 500 West (Independence Avenue) as part of the primary detour network. Middleton said the bridge deck will remain in place until August and that most local streets will be signed for “local traffic only” to discourage neighborhood cut-throughs. For pedestrians and cyclists, the Provo River Trail will use a detour that directs users off 820 North up to 900 North to cross on the pedestrian bridge and then back to the trail on the east side of the river.

Middleton said the bridge deck will be about 46–48 feet wide for the vehicle lanes in this phase, with 16 feet of pedestrian access behind barrier walls; the presentation also described a future reconfiguration that would split the pedestrian area to narrower widths. The project will be ADA-compliant, he said. To protect adjacent yards near the south approach, the city plans a continuous 42-inch barrier wall from the bridge down alongside the approach and will work with a nearby property owner to move vehicle access onto a cul-de-sac.

Middleton said the work was held up during the environmental-permitting stage and that the city is pursuing an informal permit pathway with the Corps to reduce processing time. He estimated the contractor schedule will likely yield six to nine months of major closure work, with potential additional, shorter closures in the following spring for finishing work; staff aim to have the route open in some fashion by the end of the calendar year, he said.

The city is preparing communications materials and will relaunch the project website (riverbridge.com) with construction dates and contact information for the public and for emergency service and school coordination. Middleton said staff will coordinate with schools and emergency services to reduce conflicts when the bridge closure occurs because the project timing overlaps the start of the school year in August.

Middleton also confirmed a separate change to 50 West: the temporary cul-de-sac with barriers now in place will be made permanent so that the street remains a dead end, preserving driveway access to two homes. He said the city will incorporate an aesthetic element honoring “Bella Park” if the family for whom the dedication is proposed agrees.

Discussion at the committee included sight-line and detour safety questions from committee members and Public Works staff. Middleton directed citizens to the project website for updates and encouraged direct contact to the project team for questions about timing and traffic control.

Votes at the meeting relevant to this item: the committee voted to approve the March meeting minutes at the start of the session (motion by Noah Gordon; second, Joy McMurdie) and the motion carried without recorded opposition.