20-Minute Closures of I-70 in Glenwood Canyon for Rock Scaling Operations
GLENWOOD CANYON— The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has announced that on Tuesday, August 4th, and Wednesday, August 5th, there will be a full closure of Interstate 70 between Grizzly Creek, Mile Marker (MM) 121, and Hanging Lake Tunnel (MM 125), for rock scaling operations in Glenwood Canyon. It is anticipated that only one stop will be needed to complete the work, but additional stops may be required. The stops, which are intended to last just twenty minutes, will include pedestrian stops along the Glenwood Canyon bike path.
“This is a major step toward concluding our project on time,” Adam Cornely, CDOT project engineer, said. “Rock scaling is crucial to maintaining safety in Glenwood Canyon for motorists and the construction team. During these operations, loose rock will be released from up to 350 feet above the roadway, so closing the road is the safest option available.”
Crews are making every effort to minimize impacts to traffic. According to Cornely, the 7 a.m. time was chosen because traffic studies show substantially lower traffic volumes and less commuter impact than any other time during the day.
The $7.3 million project, which was awarded to Truesdell Corporation, is expected to conclude October 30th, 2015. The project removes the existing asphalt and waterproofing membrane, replacing it with a thin-bonded polyester concrete overlay. This increases the longevity of the wearing surface and decreases the frequency of overlays within the canyon. The new wearing surface also functions as a waterproof barrier, preventing corrosion of the bridge deck.
Bridge deck repairs, bridge rail and rockfall fence replacements also are included in this project.
Normal work hours are Monday through Friday during daylight hours. Some night and weekend work is anticipated.
Since July 6th, the project has been in a 24/7 head to head traffic configuration (a single lane in each direction), which is expected to continue through the end of October 2015. There is a 24/7 wide-load restriction of 10 feet, which will remain in place through September or October.
CDOT would like to remind motorists to Slow for the Cone Zone. Fines will be doubled within the work zone. If you have questions or concerns about this project, please call the project hotline at 970-930-8009 or email i70glenwood@PublicInfoTeam.
To receive updates about road conditions in your area, visit www.codot.gov and click on white envelope icon at the bottom of the page. Information about weekly lane closures will be available at https://www.codot.gov/travel/
