Highway 69 Closure Next Week

SH 69 will be closed from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., allowing crews to remove temporary asphalt millings and pave the one-lane detour parallel to the Antelope Creek Bridge.  CDOT is in the process of replacing the current 64-year-old structure with a concrete box culvert. 

While the highway is closed, drivers coming from the south can use I-25 north to SH 165/Colorado City, north to SH 96, west on SH 96 to the Westcliffe/Silver Cliff area.  The routes can be traveled in reverse for drivers coming from the north.

When the detour reopens, a signal will alternate northbound and southbound traffic through the work zone about every two minutes – 24 hours a day/seven days a week. 

Replacing the bridge is one phase of an overall project that includes adding seven-foot shoulders along a four-mile segment of SH 69, beginning just south of Westcliffe.  Currently, shoulders are non-existent through this area.  Other aspects of the project include new drainage structures, earthwork, erosion control, new signs and striping. 

In areas where shoulder widening is taking place, drivers should expect traffic stops up to 15 minutes from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Fridays.  A reduced 40 mph speed limit is in effect and vehicles wider than 12 feet will not be allowed to travel through the work zone.  

The $3.5 million project, contracted to Tezak Heavy Equipment Co. Inc., of Caňon City, Colo., is scheduled for completion in November 2012.

Specific day-to-day information about the project is available by calling the hotline at 719-431-9595