Newfangled 'ThrU Turn' opens Sunday in Kearns

The state's second newfangled "ThrU Turn" intersection is scheduled to begin operation on Sunday in Kearns at the intersection of 5400 South and 4015 West.

It will not allow any left turns at the intersection to help speed traffic. Instead, cars seeking to go left generally must first proceed straight through the intersection and then make a U-turn at a special signal about 500 yards down the road, come back to the intersection and then make a right turn.

However, eastbound drivers on 5400 South who want to turn left onto 4015 West toward Kearns Junior High must make a slightly different maneuver. They must first turn right at that intersection, make a U-turn at a special signal near the Post Office, and then return and go straight through the intersection.

An animation of how that intersection will work is available online at bit.ly/ZTpA8U.

UDOT installed its first ThrU Turn — called Michigan U-Turns in other parts of the nation — this year at 12300 South and State Street in Draper.

The Kearns ThrU-Turn is part of a road-widening project on 5400 South between Bangerter and 4800 West, which will now have seven lanes, wider sidewalks and improved drainage. The project required demolishing about three dozen homes and some businesses.

"Motorists will soon notice improved mobility and safety along the newly widened corridor," said Troy Peterson, UDOT project manager.