A commercial truck crashed on I-70 about six miles east of Glenwood Springs, which was closed to eastbound traffic between 9:30 a.m. and 3 p.m.
The state Highway Department says it has not finished closing the planned eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 through Glenwood Canyon for repairs and maintenance after Tuesday’s truck crash, but will do so at 11 a.m. today.
CDOT said eastbound traffic will be allowed until 11 a.m. this morning, after which the road will be closed indefinitely.
“The afternoon closure will allow morning commuters to travel through the canyon. The eastbound closure is expected to last several hours today,” CDOT said in a news release.
Both eastbound lanes of I-70 in Glenwood Canyon were closed at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday because of the crash. Sometime Tuesday night or early Wednesday, one of the eastbound lanes was reopened, allowing traffic to resume.
On Tuesday, many drivers exited I-70 from Glenwood Springs and took State Highway 82 toward Aspen to access Independence Pass as a way to get to the front line. There were reports of a large vehicle getting stuck in the pass, causing heavy traffic in the area. No Pitkin advisories have been issued related to this issue.
CDOT has issued the following recommendation for the closure of Glenwood Canyon: A “northbound alternate route” can be accessed in Rifle at Exit 87, then north on State Highway 13 to Craig. The route continues on US 40 to Steamboat Springs, then south on State Highway 9 to Silverthorne, where travelers can again access I-70. (Visit COtrip.org for route details and closure updates).
Westbound I-70 traffic is allowed through the crash area east of Glenwood Springs. CDOT and the Colorado Highway Patrol urged drivers to slow down and obey the speed limit in the area, according to the release.
The release says the crash involved a semi-truck about six miles east of Glenwood Springs on Tuesday morning. The tractor-trailer was traveling in the westbound lanes of I-70 when it struck a guardrail and landed in the lower-deck eastbound lanes, the release added.
As of Tuesday evening, the eastbound lanes of the canyon remained closed. But later that evening, CDOT’s website showed that one of the eastbound lanes had reopened in Glenwood Canyon.
