Retaining Wall Work on US 550 Red Mountain Pass

June 28, 2012 - TWO NIGHT CLOSURES PLANNED - Southwestern Colorado/CDOT Region 5 - OURAY COUNTY – Colorado Department of Transportation contractor Midwest Rockfall will require at least two night closures of US 550 Red Mountain Pass for upcoming drainage pipe work.

The drainage work is part of the project to repair two crib walls (retaining walls) under the southbound lane approximately 1.5 miles north of snow shed. The work will be completed by September 25, 2012.

NIGHTTIME TRAVEL IMPACTS: On July 12, and likely July 17, the pass will be closed from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. to allow crews to remove and replace two inlets (a maximum of six nights of closures are allowed but will likely not be needed). Following this work, another announcement will be sent to confirm whether any future nighttime closures are necessary.

Regular travel impacts: Through September 25, motorists will encounter single-lane, alternating traffic between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. There will be no weekend work. Motorists will also encounter periodic full traffic holds in both directions of up to 15 minutes during work hours (while equipment is in the roadway). Please note, while these traffic holds will be limited to 15 minutes or less, motorists’ actual delays will exceed 15 minutes, as the traffic queues are cleared in each direction. Delay times will vary depending upon traffic volumes.

For information on this project, the public may call Midwest Rockfall, Inc.’s Public Information Manager Filiberto Marquez, at (970) 462-1529. (For information on other CDOT projects statewide, the public may log on to www.cotrip.org or call 511.) Better yet, sign up for highway updates by going to www.coloradodot.info and choosing the green cell phone icon in the upper right corner. Thank you for going Slow for the Cone Zone!