{"id":21567,"date":"2025-07-04T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-04T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/coal-bank-pass-rockfall-wall-work-planned-through-november\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T04:07:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T04:07:22","slug":"coal-bank-pass-rockfall-wall-work-planned-through-november","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/coal-bank-pass-rockfall-wall-work-planned-through-november\/","title":{"rendered":"Coal Bank Pass rockfall, wall work planned through November"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=3c300503-bc9d-5b81-9f5f-a9fd27ede410&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1345\" alt=\"Jeff Reichle, project manager with the Colorado Department of Transportation, looks over the rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site from above U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek.  (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Jeff Reichle, project manager with the Colorado Department of Transportation, looks over the rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site from above U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek.  (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><p>Colorado Department of Transportation crews are racing to complete rockfall mitigation and replace a retaining wall on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass before snow arrives this fall.<\/p>\n<p>Crews are working on slopes between 45 and 90 degrees with boulders perched on a ledge at mile marker 59.3, near Deer Creek. CDOT Project Manager Jeff Reichle said the plan is to excavate from the top down, reducing slopes to about 35 degrees so rocks slide to a stop rather than rolling downhill.<\/p>\n<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=f980660b-4496-558b-9cbd-88c2dcb05abd&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1176\" alt=\"A heavy equipment operator looks down from the top of the Colorado Department of Transportation\u2019s rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">A heavy equipment operator looks down from the top of the Colorado Department of Transportation\u2019s rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><p>After heavy excavation, CDOT will bring in rope crews to perform lighter excavation, he said. A rockfall catchment wall will be built that will gradually fill with rocks and sediment, eventually becoming a retaining wall.<\/p>\n<p>At mile marker 56.9, crews will replace a failing timber crib wall with a mechanically stabilized earth retaining wall on the northbound downslope. Reichle said drivers will see centerline barriers, with lanes narrowed to about 10 feet, as crews dig into the road and install wires and cribbing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re going to cut the road in half, basically right at center line, and dig a hole in the road,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s really the only way to do the work because of the steepness.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video wp-block-embed-youtube naviga-video-embed\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/38f3DMlksto\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The rockfall work will remove about 12,000 to 14,000 cubic yards of rock and dirt, which will be stockpiled at Andrews Lake for future use in road shouldering and other projects, he said. That\u2019s enough to fill 1,300 dump trucks or nearly four Olympic-sized pools.<\/p>\n<p>The work will require patience from motorists, with the rockfall mitigation and wall replacement scheduled to be completed by Oct. 1.<\/p>\n<p>The projects have been on CDOT\u2019s list for about 10 years, Reichle said.<\/p>\n<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=f3c8cdcd-dd04-5f29-b883-2515d42afcda&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1122\" alt=\"The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><p>The retaining wall at mile marker 56.9 is in poor condition. If it fails or a major rockfall hits, CDOT could face an emergency project and extended full closures.<\/p>\n<p>Falling rocks near Deer Creek dwarf the current Jersey barriers, Reichle said. Some boulders are as large as 10 cubic yards \u2013 comparable in size to a small dump truck.<\/p>\n<div class=\"naviga-element naviga-subheadline1\">What to expect over Fourth of July weekend<\/div>\n<p>Rockfall and wall work on Highway 550 between the summits of Coal Bank and Molas passes will pause through Sunday for the holiday weekend.<\/p>\n<p>However, drivers should still expect delays at two traffic signals at mile markers 56.9 and 59.3, according to CDOT.<\/p>\n<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=0d018348-5a65-5d76-8202-17550b3161da&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"1080\" height=\"1080\" alt=\"Jeff Reichle, project manager with the Colorado Department of Transportation, looks over the rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site from above U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek.  (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Jeff Reichle, project manager with the Colorado Department of Transportation, looks over the rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site from above U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek.  (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><p>Reichle said wait times will be about two minutes, but could be longer depending on traffic volumes and the automated signals.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeak periods before and after the Silverton fireworks show will have longer waits,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=988b60cd-24cb-5be1-ad71-4f434364a26b&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1347\" alt=\"A heavy equipment operators walk down the slope at the site of the Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">A heavy equipment operators walk down the slope at the site of the Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><div class=\"naviga-element naviga-subheadline1\">Where did the boulders come from?<\/div>\n<p>Reichle, a geologist, said he often wonders how these slopes formed.<\/p>\n<p>The first and foremost answer is the road itself cuts across the slope, he said. If a road had never been built, there wouldn\u2019t be a falling rock hazard. But it\u2019s also possible a landslide occurred thousands of years ago, or that it and boulders are remnants of glaciers that moved through the canyons thousands of years ago.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt could have been a lateral moraine or a terminal moraine, or something like that, that deposited the large stones as it traveled through this area,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><em id=\"emphasis-b4d38becca348ba663aa286e97439395\"><a href=\"mailto:cburney@durangoherald.com\">cburney@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=835dc74f-34e7-5989-aaa3-ff5ab38f1a87&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1019\" alt=\"The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=6ae5dbb0-a081-5abc-9a60-0f568ea93e58&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1299\" alt=\"A heavy equipment operator walks at the site of the Colorado Department of Transportation\u2019s rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">A heavy equipment operator walks at the site of the Colorado Department of Transportation\u2019s rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=e12afbae-01fd-5523-a541-9ebc225b1605&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" alt=\"Jeff Reichle, project manager with the Colorado Department of Transportation, looks over the rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project from above U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Jeff Reichle, project manager with the Colorado Department of Transportation, looks over the rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project from above U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=64d4a1f3-bf86-50d3-853a-3556d9762e5f&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" alt=\"The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=bccbd189-738d-5e0f-b399-38d2fb42c4c0&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1315\" alt=\"Large boulders are ready to come down the slope at the Colorado Department of Transportation\u2019s rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Large boulders are ready to come down the slope at the Colorado Department of Transportation\u2019s rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement site on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=d80ec09b-3d2e-5b43-a996-63c0607420fd&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1283\" alt=\"The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=6925c2a4-d57a-507c-971b-d3d758eeba9c&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1364\" alt=\"Alternating traffic is open on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Alternating traffic is open on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=32301a60-27cc-5c5d-9ea0-e5ac3aee0685&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1043\" alt=\"The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">The Colorado Department of Transportation rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement project on U.S. Highway 550 at Coal Bank Pass on June 12, near Deer Creek. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=5d6c8d3c-dfe7-5610-b807-7efd371f7b47&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"1353\" height=\"918\" alt=\"Rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement on U.S. Highway 550 between the summits of Coal Bank and Molas passes will be paused from July 3 to July 6 for the Fourth of July weekend. (Courtesy of the Colorado Department of Transportation)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Rockfall mitigation and retaining wall replacement on U.S. Highway 550 between the summits of Coal Bank and Molas passes will be paused from July 3 to July 6 for the Fourth of July weekend. (Courtesy of the Colorado Department of Transportation)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Drivers going between Durango and Silverton for fireworks should expect delays<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21568,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[2235,459,950,28,327,1384],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-21567","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-coal-bank-pass","tag-construction-and-property","tag-durango","tag-headlines","tag-silverton","tag-u-s-highway-550"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21567","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21567"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21567\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77364,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21567\/revisions\/77364"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21568"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21567"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21567"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21567"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=21567"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}