CLEARFIELD -- A study to extend State Road 193 in Davis County is nearing completion, and construction on the road could begin in less than a year.
Utah Department of Transportation is aiming to extend SR 193, also known as Bernard Fisher Highway, farther west of the freeway to provide additional mobility as an east/west corridor between West Point, Clearfield, Syracuse and Interstate 15.
UDOT Region One Director Cory Pope said a preferred alternative has come out of the study, which includes areas in West Point, Clearfield and Syracuse, to extend the road from the current intersection of SR 193 and State Street to 2000 West and 200 South.
"We anticipate having a final decision on the document within a month," Pope said of the study. "After that, we could go into the final design efforts."
Pope said the extension is needed because Davis County has experienced tremendous growth over the last 20 years and such growth will continue over the years.
East/west connectivity is also an issue. Currently in northern Davis County, east/west routes between 2000 West and I-15 are limited to 300 North and Antelope Drive.
The planned extension is a five-lane roadway with a grade-separated railroad crossing over the FrontRunner and Union Pacific rail lines.
"If we don't build a bridge across the railroad, there will just be way too much congestion," Pope said. "That's one of the prime recommendations of the study."
Construction funding for the project has been limited, but last week at a Utah State Transportation Commission meeting, UDOT told the commission it is seeking a funding transfer of $27 million from five other Top of Utah road projects. The commission will vote on the transfer at its November meeting.
In March 2008, the commission approved the expenditure of $1 million from the State Construction Fund to move ahead with the environmental study on the corridor.
Pope said construction on the project could begin within a year.
"Right now, we're not certain on a construction time frame," he said.
"It definitely wouldn't be until late next year and possibly even 2011."
Pope said the construction would take about a year to complete and that the extension would also open up some underdeveloped property on the northwest side of Davis County, creating opportunity for economic development.
The extension of S.R. 193 from 2000 West to the proposed extension of Legacy Highway will be considered in the future.
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