Regional Boards > Mountain West
I-80 Reroute in Wyoming
Henry:
Needless to say, that ship has sailed. Of all the places to build on top of an existing US highway, this should've been one, and since the townspeople along US 30 protested against the current mountain route and lost, talk about a golden opportunity sorely missed. This routing would be perfect for an alternate-reality Interstate system where most, if not all, of the unbuilt routes were completed as planned.
US 89:
--- Quote from: SkyPesos on January 31, 2022, 07:21:26 PM ---Can someone explain the weather situation to me? The elevation seems to be less than I-70 between Grand Junction and Denver, so how come it needs a reroute when I-70 probably deals with bad weather/road closures even more?
--- End quote ---
I-80 is probably a less reliable route over the Rockies in winter than I-70. The problem isn't snow or elevation. It's wind.
Southern Wyoming is a relatively flat place which makes it especially prone to strong winds. It might snow more on 70 than it does on 80, but the snow on 80 is often accompanied by stiff winds that blow and drift it around and make it almost impossible to clear. This can be a problem anytime there is snow on the ground even if it's not falling from the sky. There are multiple sets of snow gates on mainline I-80 across the state for this reason.
--- Quote from: Ketchup99 on January 31, 2022, 07:46:58 PM ---Here's an idea. What if instead of rerouting I-80, they twinned US-30 for that stretch? That would be a lot cheaper, but it would also make it a very viable alternate route when I-80 has to be closed. Since I'm not sure that I-80 across Wyoming really ever needed to be a freeway either, it would provide a fine, high-speed alternate route more than capable of carrying the traffic.
--- End quote ---
I-80 across Wyoming definitely deserves its freeway status. There may not be a lot of population along the route but there are a metric shitton of trucks and traffic counts are pretty decent by rural western standards.
JREwing78:
--- Quote from: Ketchup99 on January 31, 2022, 07:46:58 PM ---Here's an idea. What if instead of rerouting I-80, they twinned US-30 for that stretch?
--- End quote ---
Is that a pressing need? From the standpoint of traffic management, is US-30 in any danger whatsoever of becoming overloaded, even during a closure of I-80?
More to the point - what are the conditions that would make the existing US-30 NOT viable as an alternative route? Its posted speed limit (70 mph) is well higher than what reasonable people would be traveling at in inclement weather. The lanes are standard 12 foot lanes with wide shoulders, and periodic passing lane sections. There is also a fairly long 4-lane divided stretch between Rock River and Bosier.
Honestly, the only problems with US-30 is that it is 16 additional miles, and services are more limited on the stretch compared to I-80. WYDOT doesn't need to drop a bunch of cash on a twinning that's not going to get used more than a handful of times per year. As US 41 mentioned, weather conditions that shut down I-80 frequently will also shut down US-30.
Plutonic Panda:
--- Quote from: Ketchup99 on January 31, 2022, 07:46:58 PM ---Here's an idea. What if instead of rerouting I-80, they twinned US-30 for that stretch? That would be a lot cheaper, but it would also make it a very viable alternate route when I-80 has to be closed. Since I'm not sure that I-80 across Wyoming really ever needed to be a freeway either, it would provide a fine, high-speed alternate route more than capable of carrying the traffic.
--- End quote ---
What about twinning it and using one side as a pedestrian/bike path until I-80 is shut down and then is switched to car traffic only? That would be reasonable.
US 89:
--- Quote from: Plutonic Panda on February 01, 2022, 09:57:29 AM ---
--- Quote from: Ketchup99 on January 31, 2022, 07:46:58 PM ---Here's an idea. What if instead of rerouting I-80, they twinned US-30 for that stretch? That would be a lot cheaper, but it would also make it a very viable alternate route when I-80 has to be closed. Since I'm not sure that I-80 across Wyoming really ever needed to be a freeway either, it would provide a fine, high-speed alternate route more than capable of carrying the traffic.
--- End quote ---
What about twinning it and using one side as a pedestrian/bike path until I-80 is shut down and then is switched to car traffic only? That would be reasonable.
--- End quote ---
Yeah, for the 18 people that would use that bike path over the course of a year...
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