On a wet, overcast day last December, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert stood on the deck of the new Sam White Bridge over Interstate 15 and announced the completion of the I-15 Corridor Expansion, or CORE. The $1.7-billion project expanded and improved 24 miles of I-15 through Utah County in a record 35 months. It was the fastest completion of a billion-dollar-plus highway project in the U.S.
But it was only the second major highway opening that day. Several hours earlier in western Salt Lake County, the Utah Dept. of Transportation also celebrated first-phase completion of the Mountain View Corridor (MVC). The $270-million phase included 15 miles of new two-lane roads, bridges, signalized intersections and trails.