I-70 in Glenwood Canyon reopened with ‘pilot cars’ and limited hours

State transportation officials are noncommittal about a specific reopening time for Interstate 70 in Glenwood Canyon this weekend, as heavy rains overnight Thursday continued to cause problems with rockfall mitigation.

PILOT CAR CONFIGURATION: Eastbound traffic is routed into one-lane starting at Exit 116 (Glenwood Springs) all the way to Grizzly Creek rest area where the pilot car picks up traffic.

The rock slide happened about 9 p.m. on Monday night and severely damaged a semi-trailer in the interstate’s westbound lanes.

Once necessary roadway and roadside repairs are completed to enable head-to-head, two-way travel through the canyon, CDOT will move to open one lane in each direction.

The Grizzly Creek, Hanging Lake and Shoshone rest areas will be closed during the duration of the pilot vehicle operation.

“We are in an extreme situation”, Ford said.

The closure is the longest to date of Interstate 70 through the canyon.

Westbound traffic will go to one lane at the Bair Ranch Rest Area (mile marker 129) and will meet the pilot vehicle just east of the Hanging Lake Tunnels, she said.

“We want to encourage people to remain safe and stay in their cars”, Trulove said.

Ford said it could take several weeks before the interstate is fully open and repairs could cost up to $5 million.

Once the interstate is reopened to free-flowing traffic, it could still be limited to two-way, head-to-head traffic in the eastbound lanes for a period of time while repairs are being made to the elevated westbound section.

They say crews have been using inflatable bags to knock down loose rock since the initial slide, but there are still many more that need to fall.

Detours around Glenwood Canyon continue to be the northerly route eastbound from Rifle via state Highway 13 to USA 40 from Craig to Steamboat Springs, and either state Highway 131 south to Wolcott, or continuing over Rabbit Ears Pass to Highway 9 and on to I-70 at Silverthorne.

More than 400 tons of rock needed to be mitigated and were brought down over the past week.

The agency says it’s still aiming for Saturday, but can’t confirm yet because of the additional work for removing rocks on Friday. Another rockslide further west occurred on Thursday.