Sun Road travelers can expect two work zones

Travelers on Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park will encounter two stretches of road work on the west side of Logan Pass.

Visitors can expect up to 30-minute traffic delays due to road rehabilitation from Avalanche Creek to Logan Creek (3.5 miles) and from Haystack Creek to Big Bend (2 miles). There are no traffic delays on the east side.

Construction zones include one-way travel with flaggers or pilot cars guiding vehicles through active work zones.

On weekends and after work hours, traffic lights will guide traffic through construction sites. Night closures are not planned this summer for road work.

This summer’s work is a continuation of the reconstruction of Glacier’s famous alpine highway that began in 2006.

So far, more than nine miles of the road, including sections between Logan Creek and the West Tunnel and Siyeh Bend to Big Bend, have been completed.

The road project to date has cost more than $130 million, according to a news release from Glacier Park, and will require another $40 million to complete the project on lower stretches of the road.

By the end of this year, the alpine section of the road is expected to be completed, and the section between Avalanche Creek and Logan Creek should be completed by the end of the 2013 season.

The alpine rehabilitation includes new pavement from Logan Creek on the west side to Siyeh Bend on the east side.

The project includes almost 12,000 feet of new masonry guard walls and 6,000 feet of new timber guard rails, as well as slope stabilization, gutters, culverts and subgrade work.

Glacier’s free shuttle service began operating Sunday, providing two-way service between the Apgar Transit Center and St. Mary Visitor Center.

Shuttles depart approximately every 30 minutes on the west side and every 40 to 60 minutes on the east side of the park.

From the Apgar Transit Center on the west side of the park, the first two shuttles of the day are express trips straight to Logan Pass, without intermediate stops, departing at 7 and 7:30 a.m.

Regular shuttle service for all stops on the west side of the park leave Apgar starting at 8 a.m.

From the St. Mary Visitor Center on the east side, shuttles start running at 7:30 a.m. Visitors will need to transfer one or two times to travel from one end of the route to the other. The last shuttles leave Logan Pass at 7 p.m.

For more information about Going-to-the-Sun Road, the rehabilitation project or the shuttle system, visit the park’s website at www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/goingtothesunroad.htm.