US 160/550 CFI Work Progressing Well
DURANGO, CO — Distracted driving can have fatal consequences to other drivers, pedestrians and workers in construction zones. The Colorado Department of Transportation reminds drivers that April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, during which time law enforcement partners with departments of transportation to educate the traveling public on the important need to reduce distractions such as cell phones and music.
The number of people killed in distraction-affected crashes in 2012 was 3,328, with an estimated 421,000 people injured; 16 percent of all distracted driving crashes involved drivers under the age of 20 (Distraction.gov).
“We greatly appreciate motorists’ patience and safe driving, particularly as they approach the work zone from the south as they into the urban corridor,” said CDOT Traffic and Safety Engineer Mike McVaugh. “The project is progressing very well; the contractor has been working through the weather to complete items where the majority of business accesses are prior to summer peak travel.”
CDOT and Concrete Works of Colorado, Inc. are making every effort to minimize motorist delays on US 550/Camino del Rio. Current work requiring lane closures in the vicinity of College Drive and Camino del Rio north of the US 160/550 intersection is scheduled to be completed prior to the start of Durango’s summer tourism (Memorial Day Weekend). The work zones that will remain after Memorial Day will be south of College and west on US 160, outside the business access areas.
TRAFFIC IMPACTS THIS WEEK: To minimize the impacts to travelers, lane closure hours are limited to off-peak travel times, which are from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Fridays (and side street lane closures may be in effect from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.). Work will resume on west 9th Street with partial road closures for a couple of days; westbound will be closed in the morning hours and eastbound will be closed in the evening hours. Tech Center commuters will want to take an alternate route other than 9th Street to access Roosa. College Drive will have single-lane closures all week, as will north- and southbound US 160/550.
Be Informed and Stay Connected: The best way to stay up-to-date on project progress, traffic impacts and more is to sign up for email and wireless (text) alerts. Go to CDOT's web site at www.coloradodot.info and click on the green cell phone icon in the upper right hand corner of the page. Enter your information and choose "US 160/550 Durango" under the "projects" list. If you would like to reach the project information team directly, please call the hotline at 970-238-1669 or email us at [email protected].
