Beeman from Aurora writes, “What's driving you crazy? The huge bump on the west bound lane of the Cherry Creek Dam Road. This is where the concrete portion meets the asphalt. This is really bad in a car but even worse on a motorcycle. Please get a hold of either Arapahoe County, CDOT or the city of Aurora to get this smoothed out.”
I went out there to take a look at the bump for myself and, like you said, it is significant. When I drove over it, the car rattled and jumped slightly. I never saw a motorcyclist ride over it, but I can imagine how dangerous and unnerving it would be. Traffic engineers told me, bumps like this easily develop where a more rigid concrete meets a more pliable asphalt, especially when the surrounding temperature changes frequently like here in Colorado and around the dam. The good news is that bump, which has been there for several years, will be leveled out over the next few weeks. The bad news? There's the potential for the bump to return over time will be there too.
Technically named the Crest Road at Cherry Creek Dam, but more commonly called the Cherry Creek Dam Road, is maintained by the US Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District but Arapahoe County helps facilitate closures including the one that started Monday, Sept. 30. That was the first day the Cherry Creek Dam Road will be closed for 12 hours each weekday for a total of three weeks to complete roadway repairs and repave the road surface.
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One of the repairs will be to remove that bump between the concrete surface on the east side of the dam. When I went out again, I saw Arapahoe County crews working the rotomiller that was grinding up the old roadway, including the dreaded bump. After they remove the top layer of the pavement, they will fill and repair any holes or roadway defects and then lay down a new asphalt surface. Once that is in place, the new road will be restriped.
The daytime closure runs Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Oct. 18. During the work hours, commuters can use Interstate 225 or South Parker Road as alternate routes, as well as a combination of Yosemite and Hampden. The Road will be open to traffic overnight from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. during the weekdays and open on the weekends.
Denver7 Traffic Expert Jayson Luber says he has been covering Denver-metro traffic since Ben-Hur was driving a chariot. (We believe the actual number is over 25 years.) He's obsessed with letting viewers know what's happening on their drive and the best way to avoid the problems that spring up. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram or listen to his award winning Driving You Crazy podcast on any podcast app including iTunes, iHeartRadio, Spotify, Podbean, or YouTube.
