CDOT closing US 34 east of Greeley for emergency work

WELD COUNTY –  US 34 east of Greeley – the site of the permanent reconstruction project from the 2013 floods – closed at 1 p.m. to allow crews to put a culvert through the temporary road and relieve some of the pressure that is building up there.

Water is not over-topping the road at this point. This is a preemptive measure to reduce flow height at this location.

The closure is roughly between Weld County Roads 41 and 47. It is expected the closure will not last more than five hours.

The temporary road – also called a shoo-fly – was built following the floods as a way to get around what became known as “the big hole,” an area of US 34 that was completely wiped out by the floods. Normally, there is no flowing water in this area, but the heavy rain runoff and some upstream dams that are releasing excess water are causing the water to back up around the temporary road.

CDOT is currently building a bridge over the area to allow water – like this – to go through and not damage the road. The $22 million project is expected to be complete by the end of the summer.