Influx of detour traffic prompts Colorado Department of Transportation to seek input from Glenwood Canyon residents
The Colorado Department of Transportation is asking local residents near the entrance of Glenwood Canyon about what kind of safety changes they'd want added to Cottonwood Pass, now that there's an unnatural influx of detour traffic every time Interstate 70 shuts down.
Let's get this out of the way first: CDOT does NOT want people using Cottonwood Pass as a detour, and for good reason. The winding dirt road would be idiotic for semi-truck drivers to try to maneuver in the best conditions, and if the interstate is closed, chances are good that the weather's not great on top of that.
That being said, drivers still try to take it. CDOT said it does not want that to happen, but it needs to make the path safer for locals who use the road often, and are now using it along side frustrated drivers trying to blast past a closure.
"One common option for improvements to the 14 identified locations along Cottonwood Pass would be smoothing a curve or making it so that a curve isn't as sharp," Elise Thatcher, northwest CDOT communication director said.
"That way," Thatcher continued, "travelers can see around the curve a little bit more easily, and usually then the road is a little bit wider so that it's not that you're encountering the oncoming traffic right at the sharp curve in a surprise moment."
Those surprise moments can be even more daunting when drivers are trying to make up for lost time and driving recklessly.
"Speeding in this area is a problem," Thatcher said. "Especially when there's a closure and people who are not locals are trying to make time because they've been surprised by closure."
Local drivers are encouraged to take part in the planning process for the improvements here.