US 550 at US 160 Re-evaluation

RECENT DEVELOPMENT
Challenges to CDOT's possession of property on the north side of US 160 for the 4th Lane project have been resolved in CDOT's favor. (Completed in the summer of 2009, this 4^th lane—a second westbound lane into Durango—was part of Phase I of the overall interchange construction project). The resolution of the court case means that the main overpass bridge remains in its current location and CDOT maintains possession of the property on the north side of US 160 that was obtained and used for the 4^th Lane project. In addition, allegations of fraud and fraudulent conduct by CDOT were found by the court to have absolutely no merit. (La Plata Court case: Department of Transportation, State of Colorado v. Marie J. Webb Ranch, LLC., et al., 2007CV266).

RE-EVALUATION OF US 550 AT US 160
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), are in the process of reevaluating the future connection of US 550 to US 160 east of Durango, CO.

The preferred alternative selected in the US Highway 160 Durango to Bayfield Record of Decision (US 160 ROD) and signed by FHWA in November 2006 included a relocated US 160/ US 550 Interchange approximately 0.6 miles east of the current intersection. The location of the new US 160/US 550 Interchange is being re-evaluated because of two issues that have come to light that require further FHWA and CDOT consideration as mandated by federal environmental statutes:  (1) a gas well was constructed in the US 550 alignment of the preferred alternative, and (2) in 2008, the portion of the Marie J. Webb Ranch (Webb Ranch) property on Florida Mesa was determined eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The US 550 alignment selected in the US 160 ROD to connect to US 160 crosses this historic property.

Preliminary alternatives under consideration include the following alignments and are depicted in Figure 1: Alternative G Modified from the FEIS: a revised Alternative G Modified that avoids a gas well; Alternative F Modified; Preliminary Alternative A from the FEIS, Feasibility Alternative 1B from the US 160 FEIS, additional design variations along the existing US 550 alignment (the "T" Series); the Eastern Realignment Alternative; and the Western Realignment Alternative. For a more detailed review and to see a preliminary design of each alternative, click on “US 550 Alternatives” on the left of this web page.

The environmental processes that the agencies are required to complete include consultation under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, a Section 4(f) Evaluation under the Department of Transportation Act of 1966, and reevaluation under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Section 4(f) process, expected to be completed in the summer of 2011, will inform the NEPA decision on whether the US550 connection will connect to the Grandview Interchange as described in the 2006 Record of Decision. If the reevaluation shows the 2006 ROD does not apply, the NEPA process would require a new Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for a US 550 connection.