Traffic impacts expected on I-70 at Vail Pass this summer as auxiliary lane project enters final year of construction

Road work will begin next week on Interstate 70 as the West Vail Pass Auxiliary Lane Project enters its final season of planned construction, according to a news release from the Colorado Department of Transportation.

The construction, which resumes Monday, April 20, will result in various traffic impacts through about September. The West Vail Pass Auxiliary Lane Project began in 2021 with the goal of improving safety and operations along a roughly 10-mile stretch.

“As we enter the final season of this critical project, our focus is on a safe and successful project completion,” CDOT Executive Director Shoshona Lew said in a statement. ” … Every element of this work will make Vail Pass more resilient, reduce crashes and closures and provide a more reliable and enjoyable trip for everyone traveling on the I-70 mountain corridor.”

This year, crews are planning to complete work on six wildlife crossings, an avalanche and rockfall mitigation system for the area known as The Narrows, and resurfacing of westbound I-70, the release states. The work will also include landscaping and final improvements to the recreation path between the new bridges.

The best way to stay up to date with the project is to sign up for text alerts by texting “vailpass” to 21000, according to the transportation department. There is also a project information line at 970-688-8233 and weekly project updates available at Subscription.COTrip.org

How construction could impact traffic flow

Beginning April 20, there is a possibility of daily single-land closures along eastbound and westbound I-70 from Mile Post 180 to 190, according to the news release. 

Starting in May, crews will shift I-70 traffic into a head-to-head, barrier-separated alignment in the new eastbound lanes to allow for roadway and wildlife underpass construction.

From early to mid-June, rock scaling is expected to require traffic holds Mondays through Thursdays from about 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. each day.

From mid-June to early September installation of the new avalanche and rockfall mitigation system will require occasional 20-minute traffic holds on I-70 in both directions. Only a few traffic hold days are anticipated.

Night work is possible anytime during the construction season, but is expected to become more consistent from the summer through the end of the project.

The Vail Pass Recreation Path will remain open and accessible to riders and trail users through the season, with similar impacts to previous years. Intermittent trail holds for construction access may occur, and variable trail conditions could exist through construction areas. There are no anticipated extended recreation path holds scheduled this summer.

To date, the transportation department has completed work on two new bridges, which are designed to last 100 years and offer improved curve geometry, a new 2.7 mile eastbound auxiliary lane designed to separate slow-moving commercial vehicles from passenger traffic and reconstruction of nearly two miles of the rec path It has also laid five miles of fiber-optic, dug new drainage to protect Gore Creek, expanded a U.S. Forest Service parking lot and resurfaced about six miles of roadway.