Your view from the Going-to-the-Sun Road could be delayed this summer and next due to scheduled road maintenance/NPS, Tim Rains

Road maintenance could impact your visit to Glacier National Park in Montana this year and next, so read the following carefully and plan your vacation accordingly.

Crews will be working to apply a protective coating to the Going-to-the-Sun Road and some other routes in the park this summer and next, and that will impact when the roads will open for traffic. The treatment is expected to protect the $200 million investment in the Going-to-the-Sun Road, including preserving significant roadbed and pavement work that was undertaken during the Going-to-the-Sun Road rehabilitation project over the last decade.

The $9 million project will focus on both the east and west sides of the Going-to-the-Sun Road, Chief Mountain Road, the west portion of the Camas Road, Apgar Village Loop, the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn Loop and Parking Area, and other minor areas. Pavement preservation requires warm temperatures and dry conditions. 

Pavement preservation will impact spring hiker and biker access and restrictions will likely be in place on both sides of the pass between Avalanche and Rising Sun. The park will update its road status webpage with restrictions, and issue more information about restrictions once the work schedule is known. 

In 2019, the Going-to-the-Sun Road will not open to Logan Pass before June 21, and in 2020, the road will not open before June 22 if necessary in order to complete pavement preservation activities. Road and snow conditions vary from year to year, and these dates should not be relied upon to anticipate the actual road opening date. Weather and plowing conditions typically allow for a road opening to Logan Pass sometime between mid-June and mid-July. 

This coming fall, night work for pavement preservation is planned to begin on September 2 on the Going-to-the-Sun Road with traffic control and intermittent night closures. A full closure will likely be in place from September 16-29 between Avalanche and Logan Pass. Logan Pass will remain accessible from the St. Mary Entrance during this time period. Traffic control will be in place at Logan Pass so pavement preservation can occur in the Logan Pass parking lot. The road is anticipated to reopen in its entirety on September 30 before its routine winter closing scheduled this year for October 21, weather dependent.

The park worked with the Federal Highway Administration to select a pavement preservation material that would be compatible with multiple road uses, including bicycle access.

In 2020, the park in partnership with the Federal Highway Administration will award a contract to finalize the multi-year rehabilitation work on the Going-to-the-Sun Road. Final work includes repairs to some masonry features, additional log rail replacement, and signing improvements. 

Pavement preservation will not occur on most of the Many Glacier Road. That road is undergoing evaluation to determine the effectiveness of a new drainage system before long-term improvements are attempted. The road is in poor condition. However, last year with a donation from the Glacier National Park Conservancy the park purchased a durapatcher that was able to temporarily repair some of the most significantly damaged areas.