GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - Trains have started moving again through a western Colorado canyon where railroad tracks were closed because of an ongoing wildfire. But it could be several more days before motorists will be allowed through the mountain corridor.
Union Pacific and Amtrak resumed service through Glenwood Springs after closing the tracks in Glenwood Canyon last week, The Post Independent reported Wednesday. Union Pacific’s first train traveled through the canyon just east of Glenwood Springs on Monday morning, spokeswoman Raquel Espinoza said.
Trains normally permitted to travel at 25 mph (40 kph) were reduced to a maximum speed of 5 mph (8 kph) through the 18-mile (29-kilometer) stretch of canyon.
Amtrak’s California Zephyr Line resumed service through Glenwood Springs on Wednesday, but trains experienced long delays because of debris falling on the tracks. Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said trains have been diverted through Wyoming when possible.
Amtrak runs passenger trains through the fire area only after receiving permission from Union Pacific, which owns the tracks.
Shoshana Lew, executive director of the Colorado Department of Transportation, said Thursday that Interstate 70 through the canyon could open soon, depending on the weather.
“We’re looking at days, not weeks to reopen it, so the end is in sight for the closure,” she said. “And we know that every day matters to Coloradans and to our economy. Once again, we are doing everything we can to expedite this and know that time is of the essence.”
The closure of I-70, the state’s main east-west artery, has forced drivers headed across Colorado to take long detours and has strained local and regional supply chains.
Lew declined to predict exactly when the corridor would reopen, saying rainstorms expected in the area could cause mudslides and rocks to fall from the steep canyon walls.
Michael Goolsby, a regional director for the transportation department, said rockfall mitigation crews will assess vegetation loss in the canyon, and it is too soon to estimate how badly infrastructure such as bridges, roadways and tunnels were damaged.
The Grizzly Creek Fire has burned more than 46 square miles (119 square kilometers) in Garfield and Eagle counties and is 4% contained. Investigators have not determined what caused the blaze, which was first reported Aug. 10.
“It’s apocalyptic. There’s areas up there that it’s destroyed. It’s terrible, and it pains me to see it,” Goolsby said, adding, “I had somebody specifically tell me they went through and cried when they saw it.”
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