Wolf Creek Pass could open by this weekend, officials say

Limited traffic may be allowed over Wolf Creek Pass as early as this weekend, while transportation crews work around the clock on repairs to U.S. 160 after catastrophic flooding in southwestern Colorado.

Since Monday, four teams have been clearing debris, including 6 to 8 feet of rocks, mud and debris across the west side of the pass. Other teams are working to stabilize parts of the road that crumbled by the floodwaters, where guardrails are “hanging in thin air,” Julie Constan, Colorado Department of Transportation’s region 5 director said Tuesday in an update on repair work.

Wolf Creek Pass, which typically sees 2,700 to 3,400 vehicles per day, is a vital pass for residents in the southwestern part of the state, connecting South Fork and Pagosa Springs. When the pass closes, travelers are forced to take an alternate route through New Mexico.

“It’s not going to be your normal trip across Wolf Creek Pass, but at least we’ll be able to get people through and across,” Constan said. 

The department’s top priority is to open critical roads with temporary repairs before winter. Crews have heating blankets and warming tents to help keep warm as temperatures drop, Constan said. 

Damage assessments from two historic back-to-back storms that hit several counties are ongoing. After the first storm, CDOT requested $65 million from the federal government to repair damaged roads, bridges and other infrastructure across the state. 

Shoshana Lew, CDOT’s executive director, said she expects that number to rise. 

“It will be sort of in the order of magnitude of 100 million,” Lew said, adding that a more refined estimate will be available in the coming days. 

Planning for long-term repairs will look at how to improve roads, some which were 50 to 60 years old, to be able to “withstand the pressures of today,” Lew said. 

Piedra River Bridge

Crews must completely rebuild the permanent bridge along U.S. 160, west of Pagosa Springs and east of Durango, and install a temporary bridge. 

Contracting crews are working to tear down the current, damaged bridge and then must build an embankment for the new temporary bridge to be attached to, Constan said. 

Meanwhile, materials for the temporary bridge are being shipped to the area and once they arrive, it will take about 30 days to build.

State officials anticipate the temporary bridge will be open, one lane in each direction, by mid-January and the permanent bridge to be completed by the end of 2027. 

Lew said the department is talking to contractors to see if 24/7 operations can help open the temporary bridge sooner. 

Colorado 151

Teams are working around the clock to allow limited traffic over Colorado 151, which collapsed in sections after the first storm, by Thanksgiving. Crews are working to repair four “very seriously damaged areas” across a roughly 3-mile stretch of the road, Lew said.

Without that critical road, residents must drive 3.5 hours from Durango, south into New Mexico, to get to Pagosa Springs. 

“This detour is definitely going to add probably 45 minutes to that normal commute between Durango and Pagosa,” Constan said. “But it’s a lot better than three and a half hours.”

More updates on the latest road closures can be found on cotrip.org.