More of Interstate 70 through Glenwood Canyon reopened Wednesday afternoon as crews continue to make progress on clean up .
The Colorado Department of Transportation says traffic has resumed on both decks of the interstate, which was damaged when sedan-sized boulders tumbled hundreds of feet .
One lane is open in each direction on the major east-west route.
Motorists have been forced to travel only in the eastbound lanes of the interstate in for the past several weeks because of repair and .
“Favorable weather (Tuesday) allowed the project team to progress critical rockfall fencing work and road repairs necessary to safely move traffic onto the westbound deck,” CDOT said in a Wednesday evening news release. “With this change in the configuration, pace cars will no longer be utilized.”
Officials say, however, there will be a heavy Colorado State Patrol presence in the canyon to enforce the 35 mph speeds through a work zone.
“There is always the chance that we may need to convert back to the head-to-head traffic on the eastbound deck to perform critical work on the westbound lanes,” CDOT project engineer, Justin Kuhn, said in a statement. “In the event we do that, the pace cars would be reinstated and that configuration would primarily be in place during daytime working hours.”
CDOT estimates the rock slide caused between $2 million and $5 million in damage to the interstate.
Closures remain at the Hanging Lake, Grizzly Creek and Shoshone rest areas, though they could reopen by the weekend.
The Glenwood Canyon bike path also remains closed.
Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or @JesseAPaul
