U.S. 50 is closed indefinitely between Montrose and Gunnison after state and federal transportation officials found a cracked steel girder on a bridge over the Blue Mesa Reservoir, causing detours of up to seven hours.
The Colorado Department of Transportation closed U.S. 50 between Colorado 92 and mile point 138 on Thursday afternoon based on advice from the Federal Highway Administration and state bridge engineering experts, agency officials said in a news release.
State and federal transportation officials found problems with the bridge during a safety inspection last week, which was required because of issues with similar, high-strength steel bridges in other parts of the country.
Additional tests showed a 3- to 4-inch crack that extends through a steel girder in the middle of the bridge, CDOT Chief Engineer Keith Stefanik said in an update Friday.
“At this point in time we do not even have our inspection crews on this bridge,” Stefanik said, responding to a question about when local residents may be able to use it. “We have not determined whether itap safe to get anything out on that bridge.”
There are no local detours available, although crews are working to clear and repair roads that are water-logged from spring runoff or otherwise inaccessible, officials said in a news release Friday. Local detours will first be open to emergency services.
Drivers can take a six-hour, 354-mile detour north via Interstate 70 or a seven-hour, 331-mile detour north via U.S. 160.
“The first priority is to understand exactly what is going on with this bridge and what the structural capacity is, and the second priority is to get emergency services and additional inspectors out on this bridge to understand the situation we’re up against,” Stefanik said.
State officials could not provide a timeline for when the bridge may reopen or how long repairs may take.
The problem stems from the kind of steel used in the bridge, known as T-1 steel, Stefanik said. Manufactured in the 1960s and ’70s, T-1 steel is known to cause issues and was used in bridges across the country.
Only one other bridge in Colorado uses T-1 steel – a second bridge over Blue Mesa Reservoir that is 2 miles west. CDOT crews are continuing with inspections of both bridges, the agency said in a news release Friday.
State officials may consider a disaster declaration to help protect local communities from the economic impact of the bridge closure once there’s more information about what needs to happen in the short and long term, said CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew.
Get more Colorado news by signing up for our Mile High Roundup email newsletter.
