The northbound lane on U.S. Highway 550 at Bondad Hill was closed early Tuesday by a fallen giant boulder. The rock has been cleared, but the lane will remain closed for the remainder of the week as a precaution.
In its stead, the northbound passing lane will be pressed into service to carry traffic. The southbound lane at the scene was not affected.
“It’s just a safety measure,” Nancy Shanks, spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Transportation in Durango, said. “They just want to be able to get trucks in there in case there is more debris.”
The boulder, which measured 15 feet, by 8 feet, by 6 feet and weighs 20 tons, was reported at 7:08 a.m.
Two lanes were available for travel throughout the day Tuesday, except for 15-minute delays to allow trucks to move debris.
In addition to the boulder, about 100 tons of debris must be removed, Shanks said.
The rockfall is a short distance north of where a CDOT contractor last November brought down a huge chunk of the landmark hillside that is a constant threat to traffic.
The section of hillside removed in November was about 80-feet long, 20-feet high and 15- to 20-feet deep.
CDOT monitors roadside hillsides for dangerous rocks. The Bondad Hill stretch of Highway 550 just north of the New Mexico state line and Colorado State Highway 3 across the Animas River opposite Bodo Industrial Park are among the most dangerous areas.
daler@durangoherald.com
