Critical rockfall mitigation scheduled Monday on US 24 near Minturn

EAGLE COUNTY-Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) crews working with Yenter companies will begin emergency rockfall mitigation on US 24 beginning Monday, March 23.  The nature of the work will include scaling and removing around 1000+ cubic yards of debris on the slope above mile marker 149 and for the safety of the traveling public will require a full closure of SH 24 for possibly three days.

“We feel it’s imperative that this emergency work needs to be done now to assure other loose material is not coming down on the roadway as we warm up this spring,” said Ty Ortiz, CDOT Geohazards Program Manager. “Our team is working to be proactive at these sites in an attempt to mitigate rockfall hazards like the ones we’ve encountered in places like Glenwood Canyon,” he noted.

IMPACTS: CDOT crews will close US 24 Monday morning, March 23 around 7:30 a.m. at mile marker 153 near the town of Red Cliff and at mile marker 148 near the town of Minturn. Once crews complete the initial emergency scaling, work will continue through the month to erect permanent rockfall devices.  Traffic will resume during the permanent work with some delays expected.

ALTERNATE ROUTES: For motorists traveling this stretch of highway the alternate route would be SH 91 northbound to I-70.

To receive real-time updates about road conditions in your area, log on to www.cotrip.org, download the CDOT Mobile app or call 511 from anywhere in the state. You can also find us at www.facebook.com/coloradodot or on Twitter: @coloradodot.