MILLCREEK, Utah – Salt Lake County road crews broke ground Tuesday on a project meant to improve traffic flow and safety near 2300 East and the I-80 Interchange.
The $9.3 million project begins immediately and will install a series of roundabouts in the interchange. Crews will also install continuous sidewalks, gutters and curbs. Project managers say the idea of using roundabouts to slow traffic came from a resident at one of the public meetings.
“This road, while it is a collector road, is much a residential and a small business road,” said project manager Andrea Pullos. “So we want slow traffic, we want to get them down to this speed limit.”
High speeds are an issue local business owner George Starks says has been one of the biggest problems for the area. Starks owns the Blue Star Juice and Coffee Café. He’s been on 2300 East for eight years and said an improvement is long overdue.
“People come flying off the freeway, and they don’t slow down,” said Stark. “It’s like a slingshot. They’ve been talking about this 2300 East project, so the fact that they actually broke ground is amazing.”
Pullos said the main reason for the delays has been design and fund raising. Several federal grants will help pay for the improvements. Engineers also wanted to stay within the existing foot print as much as possible. The roundabout configuration is not widely used in Northern Utah, but community council members are hopeful it will solve the ongoing traffic concerns.
“I think that will get people’s minds off the freeway and into the fact that they’re entering into a neighborhood,” said Mount Olympus community council member Jeff Silvestrini.
Construction is expected to last about 12 months and cause a number of traffic delays, including intermittent closures. Pullos said the county has worked closely with the community council to try and reduce the impact.
Later in December project managers will hold a “Meet the Contractors” night at Rosecrest Elementary to learn about the project and meet the team. The county has also set up a dedicated hot line residents can call to stay updated, that number is 888-966-6624. Residents can also sign up for electronic updates by emailing 2300east@slco.org.
