The Colorado Department of Transportation has tapped Flatiron Construction Corporation of Longmont to complete the permanent repairs on Interstate 70 following a rockfall incident March 8.
The contractor began work on the road Monday, and work should be completed by May 15, the bid completion date.

Early morning March 8, I-70 in Glenwood Canyon, Colo, was hit by a large rockfall, bringing 20 boulders onto the interstate, ranging in size from three feet to 10 feet in diameter, with the largest weighing about 66 tons. CDOT crews managed to clean up the road enough and secure the nearby hillside in order to open one lane in each direction.

CDOT has offered Flatiron Construction a $5,000 per day incentive for early completion. The company can earn a maximum of $31,000 in early-completion incentives by beating this projected date of May 15.

The repair work is taking place between mile markers 124 and 125, just west of Hanging Lake Tunnel. The work will involve bridge deck and bridge wall/rail repairs; guardrail repairs to hillside concrete barrier; median concrete barrier repair; removal and replacement of 690 square feet of concrete retaining walls; straightening of steel bridge girders using a flame straightening process; some lighting and electrical repairs; and repairs to the bike trail below. Finally, the contractor will use approximately 500 tons of base course material on the roadway, as well as 400 tons of patching asphalt to repair the driving surface.

Work will be done during the day, Monday through Saturday. There will be a single lane of traffic open in each direction, but motorists may encounter occasional traffic stops, when safety or equipment mobilization warrant. The speed limit is reduced from 50 to 40 mph, and there is a 14-foot width restriction.

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