CDOT: Highway 34 road repairs to begin after July 4 near Loveland

Drivers on Colorado's U.S. Highway 34, between Loveland and Estes Park, will need to watch for work crews after the July 4 holiday.

Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) crews will be repairing sections of the roadway that were damaged by flooding in 2013. Officials don't expect the roadwork to impede traffic significantly until after Labor Day in September, when the heaviest rock-blasting work will begin near Idylwilde.

Rock blasting will be done before Labor Day on a "horseshoe" road curve located 3 miles east of Drake at mile marker 78.4. Traffic may be stopped for 15 to 30 minutes once a day while blasting is done. The later Idylwilde-area blasting, at mile marker 77.5 will require longer road closures intermittently throughout the day.

“We expect this to be a low-impact summer for construction traffic as we begin work in the canyon,” James Usher, a CDOT project manager, said. “CDOT is reducing construction activities occurring before Labor Day in order to reduce impacts to traffic during this summer’s peak tourist season.”

Public meetings on the project will take place 6-8 p.m. on April 11 at Estes Park Town Hall and at the same time on April 12 at Big Thompson Elementary School in Loveland.

Updates on the repair work can be obtained by calling 720-263-1589 or going online at www.codot.gov/projects/floodrelatedprojects/us-34-big-thompson-canyon-1.