An East Valley roadway is set to reopen Thursday afternoon. The northbound lanes of Gilbert Road between Thomas Road and State Route 87 were closed after the release of Salt River Project (SRP) water washed them out.

SRP releases water from its dams into the Salt River when its reservoirs are full. Nicole Moon with the Maricopa County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) said part of the asphalt washed away.

The same thing has happened before in 2010 on the same road in the same place.

Moon said this time MCDOT is using reinforcement structures called Gabion boxes.

“So if you look at it, it is a bunch of rocks in metal wire boxes that are filled with concrete to hold everything in place to prevent erosion," she said.

Moon said MCDOT pays for the reconstruction because it built a road in Salt River’s wash. The last time this happened the cost was almost $3 million.