Travel along US 50 through Gunnison is getting back to normal after the Colorado Department of Transportation announced the full reopening of the Middle Bridge on Wednesday, Nov. 13.
“We appreciate the community’s patience and support throughout these past several months,” said CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew. “We know this bridge closure posed a very challenging situation for many people throughout southwest Colorado, and your resilience and understanding were crucial in helping us get to this point and we are pleased to have it open for business before winter shutdown.”
The US 50 Lake Fork Bridge about five miles to the west will still be restricted to one lane of travel with work expected to finish in December.
The US 50 Middle Bridge closed to all traffic April 18 to protect public safety after several cracks were observed during a special inspection. The repair process involved installing 250 tons of steel plate with more than 25,000 bolts to repair the structure in areas that posed an imminent risk to structural integrity.
Each steel plate bolted beneath the bridge is about 23 feet long, 2-½ feet wide and 2-½ inches thick and weighs about 9,000 pounds. Crews worked from a temporary scaffolding suspended from the side of the bridge to install the steel plate repairs.
Initial repairs were completed to open the bridge to one lane limited traffic on July 3 with expanded traffic windows opened over Labor day.
By Oct. 16, all legal loads started traveling over the bridge in a single lane while the temporary work platform was removed from beneath the bridge.
Crews are still removing the temporary platform from beneath the Lake Fork Bridge and priming the steel for the final coat of paint that will be put on each bridge next spring when temperatures are warmer.
Both lanes across the US 50 Lake Fork Bridge are expected to open in December.