BONANZA, Uintah County — A portion of a state route that connects U.S. 40 in Uintah County to the remote Book Cliffs area south of Vernal could remain closed for up to a year.
The Utah Department of Transportation closed the last 7 miles of state Route 45 in late July after crews discovered erosion around the base of the road. On Tuesday, UDOT spokeswoman Eileen Barron said the road surface at milepost 5 is still unstable "due to an open mining trench adjacent to the roadway."
UDOT is examining potential solutions and plans to include Uintah County officials and representatives from the mining company, American Gilsonite, in its efforts to fix the problem, Barron said. One possible solution would involve building a bridge over the unstable area, she said.
The road will likely be closed at milepost 7 for up to a year, with a detour route on Little Bonanza Road in place while a fix is identified, designed and constructed, Barron said. The closure is not expected to have any impact on the nearby Bonanza Power Plant, she said.
— Geoff Liesik