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PROMO 660 x 440 Sign - Construction Road Work - iStock - jakes47s

US 50 Lake Fork Bridge over the Blue Mesa Reservoir fully reopens on Friday afternoon

© iStock - jakes472

The Colorado Department of Transportation has announced the reopening of the US Highway 50 Lake Fork Bridge to normal two-way travel beginning during the afternoon of December 6.

The US 50 Middle Bridge, located five miles east of this bridge, reopened for two-way travel November 13.

“We are thrilled to announce the restoration of two-way traffic on the Lake Fork bridge, which will return the lane configuration between Gunnison and Montrose back to normal ahead of the holidays,” said CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew. “We recognize how challenging the closures on US 50 have been for the local community so we are pleased to reach this completion milestone ahead of the busy holiday travel season,” she said.

Crews finished removing the temporary scaffolding structures from beneath the Lake Fork Bridge December 4. Other work completed included polyester concrete decking, painting and striping.

Repairs to the Lake Fork Bridge involved fabricating 182-ton plates, 915 steel plates total, and used 20,500 bolts in areas that posed an imminent risk to structural integrity. Work will be officially be complete in the spring of 2025 after the final coat of paint is applied to both bridges. This work will be done in the spring when temperatures are warmer and it should only require single lane closures.

The US 50 Middle Bridge closed to all traffic April 18 to protect public safety after several cracks were observed during a special inspection. Inspections of the Lake Fork Bridge revealed similar anomalies, prompting single-lane closures on this bridge to address the cracks.