UPDATE: I-70 to reopen

Boulders litter I-70 in Colorado. (Photo Colorado Department of Transportation)Boulders litter I-70 in Colorado. (Photo Colorado Department of Transportation)

Colorado Department of Transportation workers today, March 11, are expected to reopen one lane in both directions of I-70 in Glenwood Canyon that has been closed since March 8 because of a massive rockslide.

The rockslide closed 17 miles of the roadway in the Rockies west of Denver. There was no reported damage or injuries.

CDOT has been blasting and breaking up larger boulders – some as large as 10 feet in diameter and weighing about 66 tons – and patching holes in the highway.

The slide carried at least 20 boulders onto the highway just west of Hanging Lake Tunnel at mile marker 125. The rocks punched holes in the roadway’s elevated sections, the largest measuring 20 feet by 10 feet. Also damaged are about 120 feet of steel guard rail and 100 feet of median barrier. The damage is similar to that resulting from a 2004 rock fall in the same general area.

According to CDOT, alternate routes are: westbound I-70, exit at U.S. 40/Empire to State Highway 13, exit in Silverthorne and take State Highway 9 to U.S. 40 and SH 13 or exit at Wolcott/SH 131 to U.S. 40 and SH 13. For eastbound, exit at Rifle/SH 13 to U.S. 40.