On Tuesday night, Dillon Dam Road officially reopened to round-the-clock traffic, more than three years after local officials and Denver Water, operators of Dillon Reservoir, clashed on the issue.
A Denver Water-Summit County task force worked out a security plan that includes better lighting, guard stations at each end of the dam, road realignment and roundabouts to lessen the chances of a terrorist attack on the reservoir.
Homeland security was Denver Water’s reason for closing the road after 10 p.m. starting in July 2008.
The road, also known as Summit County Road 7, serves as an important detour for traffic off Interstate 70 and saves time for local fire, police and law-enforcement operations, local officials said.
“We feel this is the right balance between public use of the road and additional security improvements,” said Thad Noll, assistant county manager for Summit County.
Denver Post staff and wire reports
