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North Tanana Drive closure starts June 17

June 13, 2019

Tori Tragis

Two road closures are expected to begin Monday, June 17.

North Tanana Drive, on the Fairbanks campus, will be closed between Sheenjek Drive and Kuskokwim Way from June 17-July 15. The contractor will excavate, backfill and compact, shape and grade the road bed, and pave the surface with asphalt. The work also includes striping the road and installing road signs. Similar work will be done on Toklat Way, which leads from North Tanana to the parking lot on the north side of the Reichardt Building.

Detour signs will guide travelers onto Yukon Drive. You can view or download a map (PDF) of the affected area. For more information about the North Tanana Drive project, call Facilities Services at 474-7000.

A second road closure on the Mitchell Expressway may also affect university drivers. This project is undertaken by the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and is not a UAF project. You can find more information on the DOT project webpage and a map at www.alaskanavigator.org.

The Mitchell Expressway’s Parks-bound direction of travel is expected to close the night of Monday, June 17, and be closed for the Tuesday morning commute. This closure is expected to last about one month. Richardson-bound travel will be opened to traffic at the same time.


  • After the closure begins, drivers coming from North Pole into Fairbanks on the Richardson Highway will not be able to exit at the Mitchell Expressway but will have to continue on toward Airport Way.

  • Detour: Drivers can reconnect with the Parks Highway by turning left onto Airport Way, taking Peger Road to the Johansen Expressway, and down Geist Road to the Parks Highway.

  • Traffic will be able to cross the Mitchell Expressway at University Avenue, Peger Road and Lathrop Street aside from brief night closures for paving in mid-July.

  • Richardson-bound traffic heading toward North Pole will need to take a short detour around the Richardson Highway ramps by taking the Old Richardson Highway past the Alaska Club to reconnect with the Richardson Highway. This detour is expected to be complete by the end of June.