Several switchback sections of the road were completely washed out by heavy rains last August and the road has been closed since that time.

Mineral Bottom Road serves as a launch and take-out point for river trips on the Green River as well as serving as the access route on the west side to the White Rim Trail in Canyonlands National Park.

Officials had estimated that repair work would take at least until May or June, and might not be completed until fall of 2011. "This is just one of those rare projects where everything all came together and it worked out better than we expected," said Grand County official Melinda Brimhall.

Funding for the repair work came from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Central Federal Lands Highway Division. That agency partnered with Grand County, the Bureau of Land Management and the National Park Service to make sure the project was completed efficiently.

"The grade ultimately will be about the same, but it will be a safer road in terms of driving and passing [other vehicles]," Brimhall said.

- courtesy of the Moab Times Independent

For more information, contact the Moab Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) at (435) 259-2100