It’s no wonder that two segments of Colorado’s I-70 earned the designation as exceptional by the Federal Highway Administration. Vail Pass and Glenwood Canyon routes travel through fragile mountain environments and were cutting edge projects. The State of Colorado prepared its first Environmental Impact Statement for the 10,662-foot-high Vail Pass project in 1972. The interstate through Glenwood Canyon took more than 20 years to design and build, but in the end, preserved as much of the environment as possible.
The CDOT looked to our team to prepare in-depth historic context reports for these environmentally sensitive routes. The state completed the Vail Pass project in 1978 and the Glenwood Canyon project in 1992. We outlined why each road is important and identified key features that should be retained to preserve their historical character. Engineers and planners will have the information necessary to avoid or minimize impacts to the significant parts of the highway segments.
When future improvements are required, the reports will streamline Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act consultation and help CDOT achieve compliance goals.
