The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) recently completed a successful test of a new remote avalanche control system on the east side of the Eisenhower Johnson Memorial Tunnels. The test is part of a $800,000 project to modernize avalanche mitigation operations along the I-70 Mountain Corridor to improve safety, efficiency and reliability.
The Wyssen Avalanche Control system uses remotely deployed charges that can target large sections of snowpack with fewer shots than artillery methods. By operating remotely, there are fewer traffic impacts and reduced safety risks.
The agency already operates five Wyssen units in southern Colorado. The newly installed system will allow CDOT’s Winter Operations Team to perform avalanche mitigation work on I-70 without using the World War II-era artillery previously used to clear snowpack.
“This technology represents a major advancement in how we keep I-70 open and safe during Colorado’s harsh winter storms,” Brian Gorsage, CDOT’s avalanche program manager, said. “Remote Avalanche Control Systems allow our teams to work more safely, more efficiently and with far less disruption to drivers traveling this critical mountain corridor.”
CDOT now can mitigate avalanche hazards on I-70 near the Eisenhower Johnson Memorial Tunnels between mile points 211 and 218 before ski traffic begins in the morning which will reduce the duration and frequency of traffic disturbances.