Almost every night this winter, 2 to 3 inches of snow have fallen somewhere in the mountains along Interstate 70.
Just that small amount can make for a skating-rink surface, a situation that underscores why a stricter law requiring truckers to chain up went into effect Sept. 1.
I-70 tie-ups caused by spunout, chainless semis have frustrated tourists, residents, business owners and other truckers.
From September through January, the Colorado State Patrol issued 30 citations to truckers who didn’t chain up. Four of those citations followed road closures.
For all of 2007, 171 citations were issued to truckers for not chaining up when required, with 11 of the incidents causing road closures.
Because of a number of variables, the new law’s effect can’t be determined “until you look at a couple of seasons,” said Colorado Department of Transportation spokeswoman Stacey Stegman.
But Greg Fulton, the president of the Colorado Motor Carriers Association, said he believes increased fines “clearly have had an impact on this.”
“There haven’t been nearly the number of complaints (about blocked roadways).”
Semi accidents in the 2005-06 winter season caused more than 119 hours of I-70 closures. Tractor-trailer lane and road closures in 2006-07 amounted to nearly 130 hours.
As of Jan. 31 this year — with several months to go in the season — semis caused 114 hours of closures on I-70.
Colorado’s chain law, which began in 1996, was updated last year with higher fines and a requirement that commercial vehicles carry chains.
Commercial truck drivers must carry sufficient chains on I-70 between the Edwards and Morrison exits from Sept. 1 to May 31. The fine is $50 for noncompliance.
Statewide, the updated law hiked the fine to $500 for commercial drivers who don’t chain up when the law is in effect, and the fine shoots to $1,000 for those who didn’t chain up when required and ended up blocking the road.
“We’re generally pleased, but we do have some frustrations and issues that we’re working on,” said Jeff Kullman of CDOT.
Fulton said efforts by the motor carriers association, CDOT and trucking companies to educate drivers have helped, as have enforcing and lifting chain laws in a timely manner.
Also, more chain-up stations are making a big difference, Fulton said. “A major problem was finding a safe place to chain up,” he said. “You have to give CDOT a lot of credit.”
CDOT spent $3.5 million on chain-up areas last year, adding 137 new spaces to the 185 existing ones along the I-70 corridor. About $4 million more will be spent during this summer’s construction season, although specific plans aren’t set.
Fulton and Kullman agree that lighting and signs need to be added at chain-up areas. “While it is still challenging, we think it has become safer,” Fulton said.
A truck driver removing chains on Vail Pass in October was killed when he was struck by a passing trucker.
But Kullman said there isn’t much room for putting barriers between chain-up areas and through traffic since the I-70 right of way is tight.
“(The new law) didn’t change my driving,” said Burt Scofield, who drives through Colorado each week hauling milk from Utah and packaged pork from the Midwest. “I’ve always chained up.”
