Colorado: Input sought on I-70 Twin Tunnels plan

Posted on July 21, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Public meeting set for July 25 in Idaho Springs

Straightening some of the tight turns along I-70 east of the Twin Tunnels should improve traffic flow and safety.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — As the Colorado Department of Transportation forges ahead with a plan to add a new eastbound bore to the Twin Tunnels along I-70, the agency wants some public comment.

In addition to commenting online, residents and I-70 travelers are invited to a July 25 public meeting in Idaho Springs to get an informational update from CDOT experts and to offer comments in person. The meeting is from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Clear Creek County School District Office, 320 State Highway 103.

The Twin Tunnel improvements are the first step in a far-reaching plan to ease congestion and improve safety along the I-70 corridor. With limited funds, CDOT is looking to make changes where they’ll do the most good. The improvements could be done in time for the 2013-2014 ski season. (more…)

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Colorado: Twin Tunnels survey work will require short I-70 closures, as CDOT prepares for highway improvements

Posted on July 20, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

CDOT will close I-70 next week for short periods to survey the Twin Tunnels area for future highway improvements. Photo courtesy CDOT.

New tunnel bore planned to ease eastbound traffic

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Athletes may have popularized the “no pain, no gain” motto, but the same might hold true for improvements along the I-70 corridor, where preliminary work on adding new eastbound capacity to the Twin Tunnels area will result in some short closures of the highway in both directions.

The Colorado Department of Transportation is surveying the hillside above the tunnels to prepare for drilling a new bore, and that work could dislodge rocks and send them tumbling down on to the road.

The 20-minute closures are set for July 25 and 25 at 6 a.m., 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. and again on July 26 and 27 at 6 a.m. and 8 a.m.

Eastbound traffic will be stopped at West Idaho Springs – Exit 239; westbound traffic at the top of Floyd Hill – Exit 247.

If the work is not completed next week, another day of analysis will be scheduled for Monday, July 30, with stop times in next week’s traffic advisory.

The closures are necessary to maintain the safety of the traveling public since crews will be surveying numerous areas above I-70.

“Traffic can’t be allowed through the area during those times since it’s possible for rocks to be dislodged and come down onto the highway while the crews are traversing the slopes above,” said CDOT’s  I-70 Mountain Corridor Manager Jim Bemelen. “We understand it’s an inconvenience for travelers but safety is our first priority. The surveying needs to be completed before we can move forward and begin reconstructing the eastbound bore.”

Upon approval of the Twin Tunnels Environmental Assessment, CDOT will add one eastbound lane to I-70 from the East Idaho Springs Interchange to U.S. 6, including expanding the eastbound tunnel to accommodate three lanes.

I-70 lane closures continue for the next several weeks, not including weekends and holidays.

To receive project updates via e-mail, visit http://www.coloradodot.info and click on the cell-phone icon in the upper right-hand corner. The link takes you to a list of items you can subscribe to, including I-70 West, Denver to Glenwood Springs. Updates also are available via Twitter @coloradodot and be sure to “Like” our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/coloradodot.

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Colorado: ‘Sinkhole’ blocks one lane of eastbound I-70

Posted on July 19, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

CDOT hopes to repair highway in time for weekend traffic

A sinkhole has closed one lane of eastbound I-70 east of the Twin Tunnels.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Colorado Department of Transportation officials said a couple of weakening mine shafts beneath I-70 may have caused a 15-foot hole to open up in the left lane of the highway, just east of the Twin Tunnels.

The left lane of the highway will remain closed while crews work to repair the hole, estimated to be about 14 feet wide. Traffic will be rerouted to the shoulder to allow for two lanes of eastbound traffic.

Biggest pothole ever? CDOT offiicals said mines beneath I-70 may have caused this damage to the highway, in the left lane of eastbound I-70. Photo courtesy CDOT.

No injuries or damage to vehicles was reported, CDOT spokesman Bob Wilson said.

Traffic will be channeled into one lane during the night to enable CDOT crews to begin fulls-cale repairs. Wilson said the lane could be back in full operation by Friday July 20) afternoon.

Get highway updates by calling 511 or via email by visiting www.coloradodot.info and clicking on the cell-phone icon in the upper right-hand corner. The link takes you to a list of items you can subscribe to, including I-70 West, Denver to Glenwood Springs. Updates also are available via Twitter @coloradodot.

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Draft EA for I-70 Twin Tunnels fix released

Posted on July 6, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Comments taken through Aug. 4

New tunnel bore, highway straigtening proposed for I-70.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Federal and state highway officials have moved one step closer to making significant improvements to the I-70 corridor with release of a draft environmental study that discusses environmental impacts from the proposed of a third bore at the twin tunnels.

The highway segment is a known choke point along the busy corridor that causes major delays. It’s also one of the most crash-prone sections between Denver and the high country.

The work, which could begin next summer, would address the narrow tunnels and sharp curves on a three-mile stretch of interstate that sees a high number of crashes compared to similar stretches of highway elsewhere in the state.

Between 2006 and 2010, there were 625 crashes on that highway segment, most of them in the eastbound direction near the Hidden Valley curve, resulting in significant delays on the highway, especially Sunday afternoons, when traffic can slow from 65 mph to 35 mph and create backupsextending past Georgetown and sometimes reaching as far the Eisenhower- Johnson Memorial Tunnels, nearly 30 miles away.

(more…)

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Colorado: Lane closures and delays along I-70, as CDOT improves traffic signage, plans for new Twin Tunnels bore

Posted on June 5, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

New info signs going up; inspections and survey work at the Twin Tunnels

Eastbound I-70 travelers will some lane closures and delays between Silverthorne and Idaho Springs the next few weeks.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — It could be tough going on and off for eastbound travelers on I-70 between Silverthorne and Denver this week, as the Colorado Department of Transportation adds electronic traffic information signs and works on the eastbound bore of the Twin Tunnels, near Idaho Springs.

The inspection and survey work in the tunnel is in preparation for a major project next year that would add a third lane at the highway chokepoint. One lane of I-70 will remain closed through June 8. CDOT expects the lane closure to be lifted by 10 a.m. and drivers should anticipate delays approaching the tunnel, especially during daytime hours. Traffic stops may also take place during night hours. (more…)

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