Union Pacific is investing approximately $11 million on track improvements between Grand Junction, Colo. and Helper, Utah. Crews have already replaced the rail in the curves between the Colorado/Utah border and Helper and have recently begun replacing ties and crossing surfaces from Grand Junction, Colo. to Westwater, Utah.
When the project is completed at the end of May, crews will have removed and installed 75,600 ties, spread 17,000 tons of rock ballast to ensure a stable roadbed, renewed the road surfaces at 20 crossings and installed nearly three miles of new rail in various curves.
Last year, Union Pacific invested nearly $43 million for capital projects in Colorado and $47 million in Utah. This year, the company plans to spend a total of $1.8 billion in strengthening the track infrastructure across its 32,000-mile system.