ADOT to host public meetings next week to discuss US 89 repair solution

PHOENIX — Now that the Arizona Department of Transportation has completed its geotechnical investigation at the site of the Feb. 20 landslide on US 89 south of Page, the agency is sharing the results and its long-term plans to repair the damaged roadway with the public next week.

ADOT will host community meetings in Bitter Springs and Page to review the preferred repair concept identified in the final geotechnical report, as well as provide information on the repair timeline and updates on the paving of Navajo Route 20, which will eventually serve as the designated US 89 detour route.

Bitter Springs Community Meeting
Wednesday, July 31
6 p.m. – 8 p.m. (Arizona time)
LDS church located at the junction of US 89 and US 89A

Page Community Meeting
Thursday, Aug. 1
6 – 8 p.m. (Arizona time)
City Hall Council Chambers
697 Vista Ave., Page, AZ

The geotechnical assessment report, which was finalized earlier this month, recommends the construction of a landslide buttress and cutting back the mountain slope. The buttress, a wall-like support structure composed of rock, would be built at the base of the slope and the highway travel lanes would be moved farther to the east by creating a new cut into the existing slope in the Echo Cliffs.

The US 89 roadway linking the Bitter Springs and Page communities has remained closed since the Feb. 20 landslide. Almost immediately after the landslide, ADOT began assembling a team of geotechnical experts to examine the stability of the mountain slope that carried the damaged highway and searching for options available to reopen the roadway.

ADOT has a range of communication tools dedicated to keeping the public informed about the status of the closure and alternate travel routes, complemented by up-to-date video and photos of the roadway damage on US 89.