With no fanfare or public announcement, 15th Street has reopened to through traffic.
The well-used artery was closed for about a month for a number of improvements, including the replacement of 120 feet of track by contractors working for the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, eliminating the bump-bump for cars crossing the tracks, according to city of Durango multi-modal coordinator Amber Blake.
“That’s a major intersection that sees a lot of traffic,” said Levi Lloyd, street supervisor for the city of Durango. “We really pushed them to get it done by Thanksgiving, when there would be all these people in town who wouldn’t know the detour.”
Kennebec Construction, who got the contract for the job, made the Thanksgiving deadline for getting the street open. They will be painting lanes today and Tuesday.
Other improvements, including storm drains and new signage, have been completed.
A transfer point accessible to people with disabilities was installed for riders on Route 1, the trolley, and Route 4, the bus to Fort Lewis College.
“We still need to build and repair sidewalks from the Animas River Trail to 14th Street,” Lloyd said. “But we’ll probably push that back to the spring.”
The final project will cost about $503,000, with the bulk of the money coming from the Federal Transit Authority. The city put in $100,000 of the funds needed.
Herald Staff Writer Dale Rodebaugh contributed to this story.
