GoI70

Posts Tagged ‘mountain’

Mud season is over! The July 4th weekend is the beginning of summer along I-70. The snow is quickly melting off the mountain peaks. The season of music and sports in the high country is just around the corner. CDOT has been busy getting I-70 ready for the parade of hikers, picnickers, festival goers and sightseers.

You are not the only one excited about the beginning of summer. If you are traveling west mid-day Friday or east Sunday you will have plenty of company.  While every year is somewhat different, we think you can expect very heavy traffic – and very slow travel times – during the peak hours in 2010. The 4th of July is the beginning of a very predictable pattern of peak traffic on I-70: slow westbound on Friday and slower yet eastbound Sunday.

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The AAA is predicting that this year will see a 20% increase in the number of travelers heading to the Colorado mountains. Last year was a heavy year for travel through the Eisenhower tunnel over the 4th of July holiday; a 20% increase would put an unprecedented number of people on the road.

The rush to the mountains will begin by mid-morning Friday, July 2nd. Based on recent experience, the trip from Denver to Vail will slow to an average speed of 45 mph by 11 am and drop to almost 30 mph by noon. In practice that means, a whole lot of jarring stop and go driving.

Get out of town well before 10 am if you want to get across the Continental divide at highway speeds. The westbound crunch should begin to let up by late afternoon with speeds returning to normal by 6 pm.

The return trip to the Denver metro area on Sunday will try the patience of even the Saints among you. Once again travel times will slow rapidly between 10 am and noon. By noon the 1 hour 20 minute trip from Vail to Denver will take twice as long. In 2008, delays of 2 hours lasted from 1 pm until 4 pm. Historically, traffic does not fully returned to highway speeds until 7 or 8 pm.

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If you must travel at the peak hours, be prepared for long queues from Silverthorne to the Eisenhower Tunnel, a crawl through Empire Junction and herky-jerky, stop and go through Idaho Springs.

Be prepared and be patient! If you are tired or hungry you won’t miss much by stopping to visit. By the time you have rested and eaten the highway will be moving just a little faster.

Better yet, get out early or stay late.