Durango has a new point of entry.
Motorists on Sunday began using a realigned portion of U.S. Highway 550 that connects with the Grandview Interchange – long dubbed the “Bridge to Nowhere” as a result of yearslong delays linking Highway 550 with the interchange.
In unison with the realignment opening, Farmington Hill was closed and crews have already begun dismantling the steep, curvy, two-lane road that was cut into the hillside decades ago.
Commuters in the Durango area on Tuesday seemed mostly pleased with the new connection, which includes a nearly $100 million realignment of Highway 550 and a $47 million (in early 2010 dollars) for the interchange.
The connection includes a new roundabout, a feature some commuters are thrilled with and others are frustrated by. At least one driver was seen traveling the wrong direction in the roundabout on Tuesday.
Lisa Schwantes, spokeswoman with the Colorado Department of Transportation, said the traffic switch was implemented in stages throughout Sunday, beginning with fresh paint striping at several sites and followed by northbound traffic switching onto the new Highway 550 alignment just after 2 p.m.
The Farmington Hill route was barricaded shortly after the traffic switch, and the Grandview Interchange opened entirely to traffic at 3:15 p.m., she said.
Lisa Wayne drives about 72 miles round-trip from her home in Aztec to her work at Mercy Hospital every weekday. The new Highway 550 connection bypassing Farmington Hill shaved about 10 minutes off her commute, she said.
She often waited at the stoplight at the base of Farmington Hill before turning onto Highway 160. The new route doesn’t have a stop light and is much smoother and an easier experience, she said.
She said the new connection is “wonderful.”
“There was no stop, no traffic jam,” she said. “... And so it was just really smooth, smooth sailing.”
The new roundabout does a good job at keeping traffic flowing, she said.
She said roundabouts are confusing to some people, but inexperienced commuters will eventually get the hang of them.
Yet, not all motorists expressed confidence in others’ driving skills.
La Plata County resident Michael Cupid, who lives along Colorado Highway 172, moved to La Plata County about eight years ago.
“I grew up in California. I (expletive) hate roundabouts,” he said. “You can tell the (expletive) liberals got here and did that,” referring to the roundabout in the Grandview interchange.
He said most people just don’t understand how to navigate roundabouts, so he drives twice as defensively when entering one.
“That person next to you may go, ‘Oh (expletive), I need that lane.’ That’s happened over there three or four times,” he said about the new roundabout in the interchange. “Or a semi truck just decides he’s going.”
Cupid said more police and law enforcement patrolling roads and highways would be more effective at making traffic safer than roundabouts that people don’t know how to use.
But the Grandview Interchange and Highway 550 connection represent something much bigger and more concerning than the roundabout, Cupid said.
He said the Durango area is growing rapidly and losing its feel of community. That reminds him of what is happening in the little town of Clovis, California, near Fresno where his parents live.
“You’re 2 miles away from being out in the country,” he said. “Now there are homes all the way out there. And they’re getting ready to build the world’s biggest Costco there. … And it’s an (expletive) nightmare. Dude, it’s not fun. You don’t know who your neighbors are anymore.”
He said when he moved to Durango, he fell in love with everything about the city. But he’s worried the rapid growth will engulf the sense of community he found.
Demolition of the old Farmington Hill route has already begun.
In addition to the removal of the old highway, more wildlife fencing will be installed on both sides of the County Road 302 corridor leading to the Grandview Interchange.
“As soon as the Farmington Hill junction was barricaded and closed to travel, crews immediately began staging equipment to rubble the asphalt surface and restore the hillside back to a natural state,” Schwantes said.
Crews will also continue attaching big game wire fencing to wood posts along County Road 302.
“The completion of the Grandview Interchange has certainly been a long time coming,” Schwantes said. “Over the years, CDOT staff along with other federal, state and local agency and government partners have stayed true to the goal and long range plan of improving highway infrastructure for Southwest Colorado.”
She said the project makes for a safer commute for motorists and will meet future transportation needs as the community grows.
David Peyton, CDOT traffic and safety engineer, said in February removing the signal at the Farmington Hill will improve traffic safety by reducing stop-and-go traffic that make rear-end collisions more likely.
The new connection also features improved visibility compared to that of Farmington Hill, he said.
cburney@durangoherald.com
