One-hour delays; No weekend restrictions

Boulder County, Colo. - Travel
restrictions associated with the flood recovery reconstruction/restoration of
Lefthand Canyon Drive and Left Hand Creek will change starting at 6 a.m. on Tuesday,
May 31.

In
order to greatly reduce the overall duration of the project, Boulder County has
permitted significant travel restrictions for both cyclists and motor vehicles
during the final five months (anticipated) of construction:

Between U.S. 36 and Lickskillet Drive –
May 31, 2016 through the end of the project (Nov. 2016 – weather permitting)

• 30-minute delays
• 6
  to 8 a.m. – Monday through Friday
• 4
  to dusk – Monday through Friday
• The
  road will open every hour on the hour and every half hour during these two time
  frames

• 1-hour delays
• 8
  a.m. to 4 p.m. – Monday through Friday
• Road
  will open on the hour for a single pass in each direction
• The
  pass may be slow as it may be guided by pilot cars or only allowed in one
  direction at a time

• Limited number of 2- and 3-hour delays
• The
  dates of longer delays will provided to the public at least seven-days in
  advance via the project website and listserv – www.LefthandCanyon.com

• No closures or delays
• Saturdays
  and Sundays
• Holidays
  – Memorial Day/Independence Day/Labor Day/Veteran’s Day

Olde Stage Road and Lee Hill to remain
accessible
The
contractor will do their best to maintain access to Olde Stage Road and Lee
Hill Drive with minimal delays in order to facilitate east/west travel into and
out of Lefthand and James canyons.

Please
use caution when moving through the area as there will be several places where
construction will be active and the road will be in less-than favorable travel
conditions. Traffic control personnel and traffic signals will be employed to
move people safely through the canyon.

Work
in the beginning of this phase will focus on wrapping up construction in the
section between Olde Stage Road and James Canyon Drive with guardrail
installation, paving operations and roadway striping and signing. In addition,
the work zone will shift east to the section of Lefthand Canyon between US 36
and Olde Stage Road where a new bridge and several drainage enhancements will
be installed. This section of road will also be raised and resurfaced and
significant streambank stabilization will be included along the road.

There
is still work to do between James Canyon and Lee Hill drives. A new bridge will
be installed, which will require the construction of a shoofly for travelers to
move around the construction site. Due to the confined nature of this location,
the shoofly will be managed with a traffic signal as it will be too narrow for
cars to pass in both directions at the same time. Please obey the signal and move
forward only when the light is green.

Later
this summer/fall, work will move up the road and the construction zone will
include the area between Lee Hill Drive and Lickskillet Road, which is the
project’s western terminus. A majority of the work in this area will focus on
drainage improvements, streambank stabilization, and pavement resurfacing. A
large new culvert structure is planned at Glenwood Gulch. Travel restrictions
will be reevaluated as construction progresses. Visit www.LefthandCanyon.com or register for
the project email list to stay up-to-date on weekly travel restrictions.

In
addition, as spring runoff comes to an end, an environmental engineering firm
will begin to guide the contractor in an effort to restore Left Hand Creek and
improve aquatic habitats and vegetative areas.

“The
first five months of this incredible undertaking has gone well and has been
managed smoothly by our partners at Central Federal Lands and Kelley Trucking,
Inc.,” said George Gerstle, Boulder County Transportation Department director.
“There were some minor bumps along the way, which is to be expected with a
project of this magnitude. I believe the lessons learned will only help us
build a better road and ensure that we can keep people moving while we wrap up
this amazing flood recovery project. I also am looking forward to the stream
restoration work that will begin as spring runoff calms down. This work is also
an extremely important piece of the project. I’d like to personally thank
everyone for the patience and understanding. We could not have done this
without you.”

Project website and email listserv
You
can find complete roadway travel restriction information by visiting www.LefthandCanyon.com. While visiting
the site, sign up for the project listserv to receive weekly and timely
construction updates and up-to-the-minute information on roadway closures and
travel delays.

For more information,
contact Andrew Barth at abarth@bouldercounty.org
or 303-441-1032. All current Boulder County Transportation project information
is available at www.BoCoConeZones.com.