Night workbegins

The Daily Inter Lake

The contractor on Glacier National Park's Going-to-the-Sun Road rehabilitation project plans to start night work on Monday, which will result in longer traffic delays on weeknights.

HK Contractors Inc. of Idaho Falls will add a second work shift starting at 10 p.m. Aug. 13. For the rest of the summer, there will be four-hour traffic delays on weeknights from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

There will be a 15-minute work break at 2 a.m. on weeknights to allow traffic to pass through work zones. Night traffic will be stopped below the West Tunnel and at Big Bend, three miles west of Logan Pass.

HK Contractors and a subcontractor, Anderson Masonry of Bigfork, are working about one mile above the Loop, with pilot cars and flaggers escorting traffic through a 1.5-mile work section during daylight hours (from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.). Daytime delays at the work zones cannot collectively exceed 30 minutes.

U.S. 2 between West Glacier and East Glacier is being emphasized as an alternative nighttime route from one side of the park to the other. U.S. 2 is open but speed limits are reduced in the Marias Pass area because of the nearby Skyland Fire.

This season's road work marks the beginning of an eight- to 10-year rehabilitation of Going-to-the-Sun Road, a National Historic Landmark and a National Civil Engineering Landmark.

To offset impacts on park visitors during the rehabilitation project, the park established a free shuttle service this summer.

Park officials say the shuttle system appears to be very popular, with near-capacity use since it started July 1.

"We have received substantial feedback about the shuttle system, mostly positive," said Glacier Superintendent Mick Holm. "This fall we will evaluate all user feedback and make adjustments where feasible."

Park officials hope the shuttle system, as an alternative to reach points along Sun Road, will reduce the number of vehicles using the road during the reconstruction work.

All other major park roads are open without delays.

The Inside North Fork Road was opened this week between Fish Creek and Logging Creek. That stretch of the road had been closed due to flood damage from heavy rains last November.