The drive to the mountains along I-70 will look a little different this weekend. Starting Thursday night, CDOT will shift traffic lanes on westbound I-70 near Hidden Valley and Idaho Springs away from the center divider to make room for crews to work in the median.
The eastbound side of I-70 was realigned last week.
The work is all part of the I-70 Floyd Hill improvement project that is adding an express lane and reducing the number of curves just west of the hill.
“We're all familiar with that tight curve that is hard to see if there's wildlife or a crash coming up ahead, so that's going to be straightened out a bit more,” says Stacia Sellers with CDOT. “This work in that area, we're going to start to straighten out some of the curves to improve safety, which is going to greatly improve the line of sight distance for those who drive in that area.”
Overnight tonight you will see single-lane closures on westbound I-70 between Hidden Valley/Central City Parkway and Colorado Boulevard in Idaho Springs. Crews will at the same time make surface repairs and fill potholes.
Separately this week, CDOT began running an on-demand courtesy shuttle operating seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., to bypass the closure of the Clear Creek Greenway Trail. The trail remains closed between the US 6 and Hidden Valley Exit for construction and utility work. There will be a pick-up/drop-off location at the east and west ends of the trail closure.
Once you arrive at either end of the trail closure, dial 720-760-2718 and the shuttle will pick you up and drive you to the opposite side. The work on the trail is scheduled to last until spring 2024, but trail users can expect ongoing trail impacts and closures through the end of 2027.
The evolution of Colorado's roadways
As Colorado grew, so did our highways. In honor of our 70th anniversary on the airwaves, we opened up the archives. In this video, Denver7 Traffic Expert Jayson Luber takes us on a road trip – from the Mouse Trap to Floyd Hill.