Colorado’s main north-south arterial, Interstate 25, is once again running smoothly or nearly so following an October 15th train derailment that shut down and later merely slowed the flow of traffic for days. The derailment also cost a long-distance driver his life.
The train carrying thousands of tons of Wyoming coal to Pueblo’s Comanche Power Station hit a stretch of faulty track north of the city causing the derailment. The accident impacted thousands of drivers who were forced to detour, sometimes adding hours to their commute.
Investigators from both state and federal agencies say the derailment occurred just north of Pueblo between mileposts 106 and 107. The accident caused 30 railcars to go offtrack and the collapse of a bridge that joins the east to the west sides of the interstate. It is precisely where the truck driver was at as the bridge collapsed. He is identified as Lafollette Henderson of Compton, California.
Governor Jared Polis was on site to inspect the accident. “This is a terrible tragedy,” he told reporters. “But I want to thank our partners, both the railroad and federal government for working with us to minimize the disruption to Colorado, motorists and to interstate commerce.” Polis also shared his condolences to the driver killed in the accident.
It’s undetermined just how many drivers were inconve- nienced by the derailment, with some saying that it added as many as two to three hours to the trip from Pueblo to Denver, normally an hour and forty-minute commute.
“If you look at a map of Colorado,” said Colorado Department of Transportation’s Amber Shipley, “the nearest point getting back to Denver is Highway 115.” But, said one driver heading back to Denver from a weekend in Taos of the unexpected gridlock, “no one seemed to know how to get to the detour.”
Shipley said CDOT and Colorado State Patrol tried to direct traffic to the detour, but “people were ignoring our recommendation of 115.” The confusion or frustration only exacerbated an already difficult situation.
Shipley acknowledged that “there was a little bit of confusion…but there was signage pointing to 115.” The Highway 115 and I-25 connection is two miles south of where the accident occurred. From there it is 29 miles west to Penrose on Highway 50 and the recommended alternate route which takes drivers to Colorado Springs.
Repairs and cleanup went on around the clock, with much of the roadwork on the northbound side of the road. Interestingly, the stretch of track that investigators have pinpointed as the cause of the derailment had been inspected by BNSF just a short time before the accident.
While the stretch of I-25 is now accommodating a normal flow of traffic, speeds may continue to be at a slightly slower level and remain that way for a few more days or longer. Shipley also said that while near normalcy has returned, drivers may have to plan on delays in the days or weeks ahead as crews work to complete repairs on both the bridge spanning I-25 and the damage on the road caused by the weight of both the coal cars and their cargo.
Both Pueblo and Colorado Springs Fire Departments assisted in the aftermath of the accident.
For more information on the roadway and any restrictions on travel consult the Colorado Department of Transportation or visit Homepage- Colorado Department of Transportation (codot.gov).
