CDOT’s freight program manager presented the results of a chain‑station feasibility study and a set of near‑term operational improvements intended to reduce closures and improve safety on mountain corridors.

Craig Hurst said Colorado’s inventory shows roughly 130 chain stations statewide — 74 chain‑up locations and 56 chain‑down sites — and that the state averages about 228 chain‑law activations per year on I‑70. He said CDOT has invested about $41.5 million from the National Highway Freight Program since 2016 to build and maintain chain stations and is testing technology at the Vail Pass chain station to provide real‑time availability to truckers. Craig described how under‑utilization of some chain stations and illegal truck parking can reduce capacity and increase queueing during activations.

The study evaluated economic and safety tradeoffs and concluded that proactive corridor management (such as earlier chain‑law activation and improved chain station capacity) reduces closure time and economic impacts. Craig’s team used federal industry metrics and an economic model that estimated a full I‑70 closure costs industry roughly $115,000 per hour, with estimated savings of about $103,000 per event for proactive management; extreme events showed much larger hourly impacts.

Operational and program responses discussed at STAC included: identifying candidate chain‑station sites on US‑285, designing additional truck parking (including heavy/oversize spaces) at strategic points on the Plains, enhancing enforcement partnerships (state patrol and local law enforcement) and piloting chain‑station management technology to show real‑time availability at Vail Pass. Craig also said the Division of Maintenance & Operations is developing a permitting and rulemaking process to allow private third‑party vendors to provide chain‑installation services at permitted locations; the program is in rule development and may not be ready for the current winter season.

Why it matters: better chain‑station planning, additional truck parking and technology for real‑time station status aim to reduce dangerous roadside chaining, shorten closures, and limit economic losses from corridor shutdowns.

What’s next: CDOT will pursue design and construction of funded chain‑station projects (some scheduled for 2026–2027), continue the Vail Pass pilot, and coordinate with regions and law enforcement on enforcement and public outreach.