Paving work to begin on I-70

SUMMIT COUNTY ” Motorists will encounter paving operations on a stretch of Interstate 70 between the Eisenhower Tunnel and the Silverthorne area beginning Monday, June 16.

The Colorado Department of Transportation will begin rotomilling on westbound I-70 in preparation for paving between the tunnel and the top of Silverthorne Hill (mile 203.5).

The project will include guardrail replacement, minor bridge repair, erosion control, culvert pipe work and striping.

In addition, a one- to two-mile segment of eastbound and westbound I-70, east from the Eisenhower Tunnel, will be paved in late summer.

Because of safety concerns associated with the steep downhill stretch west of the tunnel, all commercial vehicles weighing more than 26,000 pounds will be detoured over Loveland Pass while the paving work is under way, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., according to CDOT. Detoured traffic can return to I-70 at Silverthorne.

All other work, both on- and off-road, will take place around the clock, from 10 p.m. Sundays until noon on Fridays. One or two lanes will be closed and the speed limit will be reduced to 45 mph in the work zone.

Only minor delays are anticipated during project hours, according to CDOT, but the agency will monitor traffic and adjust and/or remove lane closures if long backups develop.

Any work that could impact traffic will be suspended for the Independence Day and Labor Day holidays.

“There could be some traffic impacts at times, but this is the mountain paving season and we have limited time each year to make these necessary improvements,” said Kevin Brown, CDOT project engineer, in a press release.

Eastbound lanes were paved last year; this summer’s work is a continuation of that project, he said.

Asphalt Specialties Co. of Henderson, Colo. is the contractor for the $4.5 million project. It is scheduled for completion in September 2008.