Berthoud Pass reopens after a 4 day closure
There will be a short maintenance closure Thursday morning
Colorado Department of Transportation/Courtesy Photo
Berthoud Pass on U.S. Highway 40 reopened at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday after it closed on the morning of Jan. 14 due to an avalanche that buried 10 vehicles, the Colorado Department of Transportation announced.
There will be a short closure for maintenance operations at 5:30 a.m. on Thursday, and travelers should plan accordingly. It is expected to last about 15 minutes if “no debris reaches the roadway,” according to CDOT.
Crews have been on Berthoud Pass working around the clock removing snow and performing avalanche mitigation to make the roadway safe for travel again. However, due to continuous bank slides, windy conditions and additional snowfall the highway remained closed for four days.
CDOT announced on its Facebook page on Jan. 17 that crews encountered another bank slide along the upper section of Berthoud Pass that delayed the reopening further. Crews continued to work diligently so the safety closure could end.
“Reopening the pass (is) a priority,” CDOT wrote on its Facebook page. “The goal is to safely reopen so that travelers can use US 40 Berthoud Pass and to help reduce congestion in Winter Park and Grand County.”
Tara Alatorre is the editor of Sky-Hi News. You can reach her at 970-557-6031 or talatorre@skyhinews.com.
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