Construction to close Idaho 48 in Rigby starting Monday (Oct. 12)

RIGBY ‑ Construction will close Idaho 48 (1st South) in Rigby starting Monday (Oct. 12), the Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) announced.

The highway will close from its intersection with 3800 East in Jefferson County eastward to 3rd West in Rigby. Traffic will be detoured north or south around the construction zone.

Citizens who live or work in the construction zone will be allowed access to their homes and businesses, which will remain open.

However, drivers should minimize travel through the construction zone between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, when work is expected to take place. The road closure will last up to four weeks.

Crews will place curb, gutter and approaches to driveways beginning at 3800 East, which is the west end of the project. Work will be in preparation for paving the new highway later in the month.

ITD requests that residents be patient as workers pour sections of concrete. Cure time for the concrete to set up properly will be five to seven days, depending on the weather.

Closure and construction work will inconvenience motorists, but it will enable the contractor to finish the project before winter sets in.

The contractor would like to install each approach in one pour, but crews will pour half of an approach at a time if requested by the home or business owner.

The fewer the vehicles in the construction area, the easier, quicker and safer the contractor will be able to finish the project. School buses already are using the detour routes.

With the exception of 5th West, which will be closed at its intersection with Idaho 48, streets that intersect the highway along the construction zone will remain open to north‑south traffic. Emergency vehicles will be allowed through the construction zone at all times.

When the entire project is completed, Idaho 48 will be three lanes from 3800 East to Yellowstone Highway.

The ongoing construction is to improve traffic safety and flow on a 1.7-mile stretch of Idaho 48 through the Rigby area. The project is one of the eight highway construction projects in Idaho using federal stimulus funds to strengthen the economy through much needed investments in the transportation system.

Crews will reconstruct Idaho 48 (300 N.) from its intersection with 3800 E. in Jefferson County eastward to 3rd West in Rigby. They also will resurface the highway from 3rd West to the Yellowstone Highway east of Rigby. Widening Idaho 48 near Rigby High School will help school employees and students safely travel and pull off of Idaho 48.

ITD awarded HK Contractors, Inc., of Idaho Falls, the $3 million contract.