Commuters passing near the construction zone where bridges that will connect a realigned U.S. Highway 550 to “The Bridge to Nowhere” will soon see summer construction picking up and shifting to the south.
By the end of July, cement is expected to be poured on the Gulch A Bridge, the 600-foot span that along with the 250-foot Gulch B Bridge to its north will link the realigned Highway 550 to what is officially called the Grandview Interchange.
Once cement is laid on the Gulch A Bridge, construction vehicles can use it to move earth removed in cuts required for the building of the bridges from north of Gulch A to the realigned lanes to the south.
The earthen material will then be used as fill material, road base and embankment for the future realigned lanes of Highway 550.
Reuse of the earth dug out in building the bridges was a big environmental benefit of the winning proposal for the job, submitted by general contractor Lawrence Construction Co., and the designer, RS&H Inc.
“One of the innovations we found beneficial with Lawrence’s and RS&H’s proposal was they chose to use the material, to grab that material and keep it within the alignment of the corridor,” said David Valentinelli, a Colorado Department of Transportation resident engineer and project director of the Highway 550 realignment.
Andrea Meduna, project engineer on the realignment, said use of the dirt removed in the bridge cuts also cuts down on construction traffic, as fill material doesn’t have to be trucked in from off-site.
In the next two months, the detour through the construction zone will be shifted to the west and a temporary construction bridge, to be used by construction vehicles, will be built over County Road 220.
The temporary bridge will allow unimpeded traffic flows both for construction vehicles and motorists traveling on Highway 550, as the intersection for County Road 220 will be altered to a T-intersection instead of the current triangle configuration.
“I wouldn’t expect it to be real pretty, but it will be effective,” Valentinelli said of the temporary construction bridge.
The shift of traffic to the west will allow the realigned northbound lanes to be built. Once they are completed, traffic will be shifted onto them, and the realigned southbound lanes will be built.
It’s important for drivers to obey speed restrictions and have patience in the work zone, Meduna said.
“Mining is considered the most dangerous job, but I don’t think so,” said Meduna, who has also worked as a contractor in gold and silver mines. “I think highway construction is more dangerous.”
CDOT began construction on the $98.6 million realignment and connection to the Grandview Interchange in late summer 2020, and it is expected to be completed in spring 2023.
Valentinelli said the project remains on budget and on schedule.
One of the reasons CDOT liked the Lawrence and RS&H proposal was that it reduced the area that had been anticipated to be impacted by the cuts for the bridges by 8½ acres, Valentinelli said.
“They were able to reduce the amount of environmental impacts. That was a big bonus,” he said.
The project involves building a new 1.1-mile, four-lane section of Highway 550 north of County Road 220 to connect to the Grandview Exchange. It also includes widening a 3.3-mile section of Highway 550 south of County Road 220 to four lanes and tying it into the County Road 302 intersection.
The big benefit of the realignment is that it eliminates the steep and shaded descent on Farmington Hill, which provided winter-driving difficulties. The hill is frequently closed during snowstorms.
For years, proposals have been made to bypass the steep grade on Farmington Hill, which state officials have said since the early 1990s will not withstand the region’s expected population growth and the ensuing traffic.
The grade on the descent in the new project will be 4.5% compared with a grade ranging from 6% to 8% on Farmington Hill, Valentinelli said.
The new bridges will include electronic sensors that monitor the friction and temperature on the road surface and can send messages to highway crews telling them when they need to plow and sand during snowstorms.
The project is now hitting its stride after numerous setbacks.
Problems with land negotiations, legal battles with property owners resulting in the use of eminent domain and then the discovery of a vast network of Native American ruins all delayed the effort to realign Highway 550 to “The Bridge to Nowhere.”
But in winter 2019, CDOT awarded a $98.6 million contract to Denver-based Lawrence Construction and Jacksonville, Florida-based RS&H to design and build the realigned 550 and connect it to the Grandview Interchange.
Local agencies have helped pay for the work. The Southern Ute Indian Tribe contributed $500,000, and the city of Durango and La Plata County each provided $250,000.
The Grandview Interchange itself cost $47 million, and its network of four bridges, six retaining walls, on- and off-ramps and a roundabout were largely underutilized since they were built in 2011.
Some doubted Highway 550 would ever be realigned to hook up with the Grandview Interchange.
The link may be coming about a decade late, but if construction continues on pace, it should be open to traffic in spring 2023.
parmijo@durangoherald.com
