This project was completed for the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) to bring electrical service to a salt-sand storage facility used during winter highway maintenance. Great Divide Earthworks installed more than half a mile of conduit, along with an approximately 80-linear-foot directional bore, creating the underground infrastructure needed to provide power to the facility.
At first glance, it was a relatively straightforward utility installation. But the impact of getting power to this location went far beyond the size of the job.
The storage facility houses a loader used to fill WYDOT snow removal trucks with salt-sand mix. That material plays an important role in maintaining safe winter travel along Wyoming State Highway 89 and over the 7,630-foot Salt River Pass, a heavily traveled mountain route connecting communities throughout western Wyoming and providing access toward eastern Idaho, Salt Lake City, Jackson Hole, Yellowstone, Pinedale, Kemmerer, and surrounding areas.
Before electrical service was available, cold winter temperatures created a significant operational challenge. Without power to plug in the loader and keep it ready for use, WYDOT crews could not always rely on the salt-sand facility when they needed to reload.
That could require snow removal trucks to travel back to the Afton stockpile location, adding nearly a 60-mile round trip just to refill with salt-sand before returning to the mountain pass.
With reliable power now available at the storage facility, WYDOT crews can load material from both ends of their snow removal route. Instead of traveling close to 60 miles to refill, those trips can now be kept under approximately 14 miles.
Great Divide Earthworks installed more than half a mile of conduit to establish the pathway for electrical service to the facility. The scope also included an approximately 80-linear-foot directional bore, allowing the utility installation to continue through an area where conventional open excavation was not the practical approach.
Our focus throughout the project was straightforward: complete the installation efficiently, build it to last, and leave WYDOT with infrastructure that could reliably support the facility for years to come.
Reducing the distance snow removal trucks have to travel for additional salt-sand means crews can spend more of their time maintaining the highway instead of traveling back and forth for material.
During severe Wyoming winter conditions, that difference matters. Keeping material and equipment accessible from both ends of the route helps WYDOT personnel work more efficiently while reducing unnecessary travel during snow and ice events.
The biggest result of this project is not simply that a storage building now has electricity. It is what that electricity allows WYDOT crews to do.
Reliable access to the loader and salt-sand supply helps snow removal personnel operate more effectively while maintaining safer winter conditions along a steep mountain route used by residents, workers, commercial traffic, and visitors.
For our team, seeing the power on at the facility represents something bigger than completing another underground utility installation. It means knowing our work helps public servants do their jobs more efficiently, supports safer travel for our families and neighbors, and provides a practical benefit to communities throughout the region.
Great Divide Earthworks takes pride in projects where quality construction creates a lasting, practical result. Whether the scope is large or small, our approach stays the same: focus on quality, functionality, and efficiency while building infrastructure that performs the way it should.
This project is a perfect example. The physical scope may have been relatively small, but its effect on winter maintenance operations will continue long after our equipment has left the site.
From underground conduit installation to directional boring and site utility work, Great Divide Earthworks delivers efficient, dependable solutions built for long-term performance. Contact our team today to discuss your project and see how we can help get the job done right.
