I-15 bridge project outside of Mesquite begins Monday

Another overhaul project on a stretch of Interstate 15 between Las Vegas and Utah is set to begin this week.

A $56 million replacement of Virgin River Bridge No. 1 is set to begin Monday near Littlefield, Arizona, the Arizona Department of Transportation announced Wednesday.

Initial work calls mainly for operations to occur underneath the bridge, but motorists should expect traffic shifts as the bridge is rebuilt later this year, first along the northbound lanes and then the southbound lanes.

One lane of traffic in each direction will be open throughout the 2½-year project.

The project’s scope includes replacing the abutment foundations, piers and the bridge deck. Repaving, new pavement markings, guardrail and signage are also planned.

“We continue to make progress rehabilitating the I-15 bridges through the Virgin River Gorge,” said Audra Merrick, district engineer for ADOT’s Northcentral District in a statement. “This latest project will extend the life of the bridge and help commerce to continue flowing through this region.”

Arizona’s 29-mile portion of I-15 links Nevada, from near Mesquite, and Utah, near St. George, and is a heavily traveled commercial and economic corridor connecting southern California with the Rocky Mountain region.

This marks the latest in a series of improvement projects for the I-15 Virgin River bridges dating to 2014.

Recent updates include repairs and deck rehabilitation to Bridge No. 2, Bridge No. 4 and Bridge No. 5. That work included the possible 224-mile detour for trucks wider than 10 feet, which was part of a $6.4 million bridge deck repair project that wrapped up last spring.