You may have already heard Glenwood Springs, Colorado has a brand-new bridge. But here are a few things you may not know about the Grand Avenue Bridge project.
1. It’s LARGE—The Grand Avenue Bridge (GAB) project in Glenwood Springs is the largest Colorado Department of Transportation construction project on the Western Slope of Colorado since I-70 through Glenwood Canyon was completed in 1992.
2. $125.6 million: the project cost of the bridge construction. That’s approximately $1.5 million each day of bridge construction.
3. It’s not all about the cars. As part of the construction, Glenwood’s new Pedestrian Bridge over the Colorado River opened in April 2017, replacing an older version. In addition to providing a convenient connection between the historic hot springs district and downtown Glenwood Springs, the wider footbridge includes lookout points for viewing the river, the hot springs and the Seventh St. dining district.
4. Taking down the old to bring in the new. It took approximately three weeks to deconstruct the old 1953 bridge including removing the structure, abutments and the pier located in the middle of the Colorado River.
5. Hats, hats and more hats. Every workday, Glenwood Springs Police Chief Terry Wilson directed traffic at 8th and Grand in an assortment of crazy hats, including a 10-gallon foam cowboy hat (a commuter favorite). But no rest for the weary as his devoted team of officers took no time off for the duration of the detour.
6. Concrete by the barrels. Crews poured approximately 1,750 cubic-yards of concrete for the bridge decking. For reference, 1,000 yards of concrete is equivalent to 100,000 basketballs!
7. The presence of rock stars. The bridge construction had an audience. The Granite Construction crews were rock stars, attracting mobs of spectators daily who came watch workers in action from the Pedestrian Bridge making it one of the hottest photo spots in town.
8. Putting in the time. The bridge team worked a total of 37,000 hours, that’s over four years’ worth of hours!
9. A time to celebrate! More than 3,000 people attended the ribbon cutting ceremony and took the once in a lifetime opportunity to walk across the new bridge at its official opening on Nov. 6, 2017. The bridge opened to traffic just one hour later, met with enthusiastic cheers from the crowd and honks from passing vehicles.
10. It was finished EARLY—10 days early to be exact. The GAB project was scheduled to take 95 days but crews worked round the clock to get it done in 85. Check out the time lapse video here.
To find out more interesting facts about Glenwood Springs, visit visitglenwood.com.
