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# DOT began an erosion mitigation project near the railroad crossing in Talkeetna
- URL: https://ktna.org/dot-began-an-erosion-mitigation-project-near-the-railroad-crossing-in-talkeetna/
- Published: 2026-11-10T18:45:37.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-10T19:13:19.000Z
- Description: this work will provide interim protection for the roadway, but it’s not a long-term solution because of unknowns about scour depth and right-of-way limitations
- Author: Marion Chesterton
- Tags: Local News, News

On Monday, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOT) began a riverbank erosion mitigation project near the railroad crossing in Talkeetna. The state agency plans to dig a trench along the roadway, fill it with riprap, backfill it, and then grate and stabilize the area. 

In the fall of 2024, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough brought this section of bank to the state’s attention and had it evaluated. But Orion LeCroy, a state hydrologist for the region, says DOT didn’t reevaluate the project and coordinate with utility companies until after last July's high-water event.

Last summer, 30 to 50 feet of bank adjacent to the Talkeetna Spur Road was lost, most of it on private property. Some of it, though, occurred in the state’s right-of-way. 

LeCroy says this work will provide interim protection for the roadway, but it’s not a long-term solution because of unknowns about scour depth and right-of-way limitations. This work will mitigate the immediate problem, but will require further response in the following years, with collaboration from the Mat-Su Borough and the Alaska Railroad. 

The Department of Military and Veterans Affairs funded this project. LeCroy says the state agency’s work is anticipated to finish by December 15th.