Highway 9 Bridge Closure Begins Next Week

FRISCO – The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) begins upgrading the State Highway (SH) 9 bridge over Interstate 70 next week, requiring an around-the-clock closure to all traffic.

Beginning at 10 p.m. on Monday, September 10, and continuing through midnight Thursday, the bridge at Exit 203 – Frisco/Breckenridge – will be closed, allowing the old expansion joints to be removed and new ones installed.

Traffic on I-70 will not be impacted.  While the closure is in place, all ramps remain open, providing access between eastbound I-70 and Frisco.   The westbound ramps also will be open, allowing residents on the north side of the interchange to exit or enter I-70.

The bridge will be open from Friday morning through Monday night to accommodate weekend traffic.

Work continues during the weeks of Monday, September 17, and Monday, September 24, during the hours listed above.

While the closure is in place, traffic can detour as follows:

• To southbound SH 9: I-70 west two miles to the Frisco Main Street Interchange – Exit 201 – and south on Main Street to SH 9 (for vehicles weighing less than 10,000 pounds).
• To westbound I-70: SH 9 northbound to Main Street in Frisco, north on Main to westbound I-70 (for vehicles weighing less than 10,000 pounds)

PLEASE NOTE: All large trucks weighing more than 10,000 pounds will need to use SH 9 (Summit Boulevard) to access eastbound I-70.  Westbound truck traffic will need to go east on I-70 to the Silverthorne Interchange (Exit 205), and turnaround to access westbound I-70.

“Those expansion joints are deteriorating and need to be replaced before winter returns,” said CDOT’s Region One Bridge Coordinator Steve Alderman.  “The new joints will tolerate temperature changes much better and smooth out the bumps, allowing for better snow and ice removal and ultimately, improving traveler safety.”

Expansion joints allow bridges to expand and contract, and avoid structural damage.  Replacing the joints periodically can extend the service life of a bridge several years.

The $110,000 project, contracted to ABCO Contracting Inc. of Denver, CO., is scheduled for completion by Thursday, September 27.

Updated information regarding traffic impacts on this or other CDOT projects is available at www.coloradodot.info/travel/scheduled-lane-closures.html or by calling 511.  To receive project updates via e-mail, visit www.coloradodot.info and click on the cell-phone icon in the upper right-hand corner.  The link takes you to a list of items you can subscribe to, including I-70 West, Denver to Glenwood Springs. Updates also are available via Twitter @coloradodot and on CDOT’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/coloradodot.