Monday evening, a press release from the Utah Department of Transportation heralded the opening of the North Station Lane bridge over I-15 in Farmington earlier in the day, replacing the old Shepard Lane bridge which was demolished earlier this year.

“The overpass has been closed since May, when crews removed the old Shepard Lane bridge to build a wider structure and begin work on the new North Station Lane interchange,” the release said. “Once complete, the interchange will provide Utahns with more ways to get around, including a 10-foot wide shared-use trail, new sidewalks and a pedestrian bridge.”

UDOT Region One Communications Manager Mitch Shaw said in the release that this is a big step in the wider interchange project.

“People in Farmington have been waiting a long time to get this connection back,” he said. “Reopening this bridge gives families, businesses and neighborhoods a more reliable way to get around.”

The release added that the new bridge still has some work to be done.

“One lane is open in each direction while crews finish work on signals, striping and signage,” the release said. “Until the signals are activated, the intersection will operate as a four-way stop. In addition, pedestrians can now cross the bridge, with a temporary route along the north shoulder until a permanent sidewalk is complete.”

In a follow-up with the Standard-Examiner, Shaw said work on the bridge will continue throughout the coming year and wrap up with the rest of the project towards the end of 2026.

He added that this isn’t the only component that UDOT is working on as part of the project.

“We still have work on the interchange that needs to be done and a lot of work left with some of the new pedestrian structures we are building further to the south, at Park Lane,” he said. “Park Lane multimodal improvements include a new multimodal path connecting FrontRunner facilities on the west side of I-15 to Park Lane east of US-89.”

Throughout the project, there have been several occasions where lanes of I-15 have had to be temporarily shut down to help facilitate the project. The press release notes this will continue to be the case with anticipated lane closures likely to be announced in December and January.