A series of accidents linked to heavy snow tied up traffic for Tuesday morning commuters in several locations around the Denver metro area and across the state.
Westbound Interstate 70 was closed at the top of Vail Pass at about 1 p.m. because of a jackknifed semi-tractor trailer, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.
The southbound Interstate 25 ramp at Speer Boulevard was temporarily closed Tuesday morning due to a jackknifed tractor-trailer, said Lori McIver, Denver police spokeswoman. It has since been reopened.
The ramp from northbound Interstate 225 to westbound Interstate 70 was closed because of multiple accidents. All lanes of I-225 have been reopened, according to Aurora police.
The southbound on-ramp to I-25 at University was closed after a tractor-trailer and a bus got stalled, said Mary McIver, Denver police spokeswoman. It reopened about 8:15.
“There’s been nothing serious enough for an ambulance to be called,” McIver said. “They are all over the place.”
In many instances, commuters have gotten stuck in snow or have spun out, she said.
“There’s a lot of accidents,” said Trooper Nate Reid, spokesman for the Colorado State Patrol, referring to accidents across the state. “There are people slipping and sliding off the road. I don’t even know where to begin. Luckily there are no fatal accidents.”
A number of vehicles have slid off the roads because they were going too fast, Reid said. As the commute traffic builds up and motorists are forced to go slower, there should be fewer cars sliding off roads, he said.
Westbound I-70 was also closed at Limon because of numerous accidents. The highway was later reopened.
Many cities are on accident alert, meaning if anyone is involved in an accident and no one is injured, they should exchange insurance information with the other driver and report the crash to their insurance company. They should file a police report later, and only call 911 if any drivers do not have proof of insurance.
Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206, kmitchell@denverpost.com or @kirkmitchell or
