A woman died and a man has been taken to a local hospital after a traffic crash early this morning in Aurora, police said.
The crash happened at about 3:15 a.m. on I-70 near the exit to I-225 and shut down the westbound lanes of the highway for several hours.
The identity of the female passenger who died was not released.
Police identified the driver of the vehicle as Randell Elce Springer, 29, of Lakewood.
Investigators suspect that alcohol and speed were both factors in the crash.
Springer, driving a 1998 Mazda pickup truck, tried to pass a semi-tractor trailer when it drifted into the left hand breakdown lane, police said. The Mazda then struck a jersey barrier head on.
The crash shut down the highway until about 8:30 a.m. this morning.
Details on Springer’s injuries were not released.
The crash remains under investigation.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
