Blizzards, rock slides and even grass fires will conspire to keep Colorado drivers traveling on the Interstate 70 West corridor from hearth, home and local businesses over the next few months.
But the Colorado Department of Transportation this week is rolling out three fairly reliable weapons to keep the enemies of comfort and joy at bay.
“It’s all about us trying a combination of things to improve the traffic situation on I-70,” said CDOT spokeswoman Stacey Stegman.
The three efforts cost the state about $1.2 million annually. Still, they easily recoup that amount by helping clear the highway of congestion during the heaviest travel periods of the season.
“All the time that someone spends in their car hurts a local business,” Stegman said. “And there are safety concerns of a congested highway as well.”
The first program — Heavy Tow — is designed to promptly clear disabled large trucks from the interstate.
The U.S. Auto Club is providing standby heavy wreckers this winter at strategic locations on I-70 between Ward Road in Wheat Ridge and Dotsero in Eagle County. Up to five wreckers can be dispatched quickly to move commercial vehicles from traffic lanes to a safe location during weekends and holidays, Stegman said.
The fifth season of Heavy Tow starts today — there is no Thanksgiving Day coverage — and resumes Friday. Operations typically run on Saturdays from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on Sundays from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Other coverage days include New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents Day.
Before Heavy Tow began, it took CDOT almost an hour to reopen a lane blocked by a damaged semi. Heavy Tow has reduced the opening time to an average of 22 minutes, said CDOT regional transportation director Tony DeVito.
During the 2010-11 winter season, Heavy Tow relocated 193 commercial vehicles and cleared lanes 214 times, DeVito said.
The two other CDOT efforts are:
• The Chain Assistance Program, which allows drivers to buy chain and chain-up service when approved vendors are present at any of the 21 chain stations along I-70 between Dotsero and Denver West Boulevard. The program is scheduled to begin this week, if necessary, and continue, as needed, through the winter.
• The Courtesy Patrol program, which begins Friday. Drivers of passenger and other smaller vehicles are provided free roadside assistance for flat tires, fuel or water transfer, jump-starts, short-distance towing, accident-scene protection and minor mechanical assistance.
Although these programs have been effective, DeVito says it’s also up to motorists to be prepared as well. Good tires and carrying an emergency kit with items such as water, food, blankets, a shovel and an ice scraper are essential at this time of year, he said.
Monte Whaley: 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com
