Truck driver cited after Independence Pass mishap

ASPEN – The driver of a semi-trailer whose rig began to slip off the edge of Highway 82 on Independence Pass on Monday evening was cited for careless driving and disregarding a traffic-control device, according to the Colorado State Patrol.

Jose Lara, 21, a trainee with the CR England trucking company, was driving east up the pass with a trainer as a passenger shortly after 10 p.m. when one side of the rear of their truck’s trailer slipped off the shoulder and tilted toward the drop-off alongside the highway around mile marker 50, according to the State Patrol. It was reported as an accident because the truck hit a post, the State Patrol said.

Two wreckers were required to pull the trailer back onto the pavement, which was in danger of tipping over the drop-off, according to the State Patrol. The highway was closed while the truck was righted by a towing company that then led the truck about four miles farther up the pass to the nearest place with room to turn around, the State Patrol said. The towing company then led the truck back to Aspen.

The pass was closed until the truck was out of the way, around 4:30 a.m. Tuesday, the State Patrol said.

Vehicles of more than 32 feet in length are not allowed on the pass, given its narrow confines and tight corners. Signs are posted noting the restriction, and Lara was cited for disregarding it, the State Patrol said.