Bill aims to force commercial vehicles into right lane in trouble spots along I-70 in Colorado, increase speeding fines

Have you ever been behind a trucker in the left lane on I-70 driving up Georgetown hill and thought to yourself, 'Hey, this is dumb.' Well, if so, you're not alone.

A bipartisan-supported bill from a group of Colorado state lawmakers -- Sen. Dylan Roberts, state Sen. Perry Will, Rep. Elizabeth Velasco, and Rep. Rick Taggart -- aims to help make I-70 safer, and run smoother by restricting Commercial Motorized Vehicles to the right lane at specific problem areas along the mountain corridor and western slope, as well as enforcing a more strict speed limit on truckers speeding through Glenwood Canyon, specifically. 

While the bill originally focused on the canyon, efforts to expand the reach of these rules were put into motion. 

The main provisions of the after the initial amendments are as follows:

• CMVs will not be allowed to pass at key I-70 locations: Floyd Hill, Georgetown Hill, Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel (E&W side), Vail Pass, Dowd Junction, and Glenwood Canyon
• Requires CMVs over 16,000 pounds to carry chains on I70 and key mountain passes throughout western Colorado (I can get you a full list if you want)
• Doubles speeding penalties in Glenwood Canyon
• Commissions a study for more chain up/chain down stations, overnight parking spots for CMVs, and more winter weather closures for CMVs

The addition of more chain up/chain down stations would be in conjunction with the Colorado Department of Transportation, which allows truckers to follow the law better of keeping and using chains on the mountain passes. 

The idea behind keeping trucks out of the left lane is simple, if they're resigned to just the right lane, they can't pass other cars, and they will go as slow as they need to go in order to successfully make it through, over, and down the passes. 

It's counterintuitive to companies who are looking to get their shipments where they need to go ASAP. 

"There's the incentives that were the results of rules being loosened over the last few years nationwide for truckers," Roberts said. "We also have a scenario where we have a lot of drivers who have never driven in the Colorado mountains before."

"They're from Florida, Georgia, or California or literally anywhere else in the country, and they have no idea what the Glenwood Canyon is or what winter driving is like. So, they get there and they don't know how to handle that situation," he said. 

CDOT has stated time and time again that speeding in the canyon is the main factor of accidents, regardless of the size of the vehicle. 

When a large CMV crashes (or even goes through a guardrail) it can take hours if not days to get the car out of the way and back open for other drivers. 

While sponsors are hoping this will keep the main trouble spots of I-70 clear, it's only addressing the problem from the angle they can. The rest if up to the drivers. 

"Of course, we need the companies to train their drivers better. We need people to be aware of certain restrictions that are happening. But, you know, the Glenwood Canyon is not the place to speed," he said.