State Highway 13 Reconstruction Project Begins Monday

RIO BLANCO COUNTY — Beginning Monday, October 17, 2011, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) will begin a full depth reconstruction project on State Highway (SH) 13 near Meeker. Impacting 1.95 miles of the highway from mile marker (MM) 25 to MM 27, the project will widen shoulders, add guardrails, and add new drainage pipes to this section of the highway.

“Due to heavy truck traffic on this stretch of State Highway 13, CDOT noticed a need to reconstruct the roadway from the ground up,” said Project Engineer Eric Peterson. “The finished product will be a new, smooth stretch of road that is safer for motorists.”

Work will take place Mondays through Fridays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. through the end of October, weather permitting. Work will pause during the winter, will resume in the spring of 2012, and is expected to be completed by November 2012.

No detours are planned at this time, but motorists can expect alternating lanes of traffic during work hours and delays of up to 15 minutes. The speed limit will be reduced to 35 MPH through the work zone and traffic fines will be doubled. During work hours, no loads of more than 14 feet will be permitted and there are no hazardous load restrictions at this time. CDOT would like to remind motorists to obey all road signs and flaggers, and to drive Slow for the Cone Zone.

To receive email or text alerts about the project, visit www.coloradodot.info/ and click on the green cell phone icon in the upper right hand corner of the page. From the list, select “SH 13 Rio Blanco” from the list of options. Project updates and photos will be posted at http://www.coloradodot.info/projects/sh13rioblanco. If you have any questions or concerns, please leave a message on the project hotline at 970-878-7107 or email [email protected].

The $4.9 million project is contracted through Old Castle United Companies.