US Hwy 50 Bridge Closure

Closed Bridge US 50

US Hwy 50 Bridge Closure – Lake City Visitor Information

Updated September 3, 2024
New information is continually being released, so check back often for the latest information.

A safety closure is in place for a bridge on US Highway 50 located west of Gunnison – although it has been partially reopened now that Phase I repairs are complete.

Lake City is accessible from Gunnison and Creede on Hwy 149 with no closures.

Allow 2-3 hours for travel to / from Montrose and Lake City.

About the Closure: The Colorado Department of Transportation has closed the bridge at the urging of the Federal Highway Administration and state bridge engineering experts due to the findings of an ongoing safety inspection, which identified anomalies in the bridge on Thursday, April 18. The closure is in place between US 50 Mile Point 136 and MP 140. Phase I repairs, which involved fixing cracks and critical issues in four areas that pose an imminent risk to structural integrity, are complete and the bridge opened to traffic on July 3. Phase II completion along with a full reopening of the bridge is scheduled for fall 2024.

Middle Bridge limited opening information:

Expanded Opening of US 50 Middle Bridge: As of Tuesday, Sept. 3, travel over the US 50 Middle Bridge is open from 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days a week. For information about the schedule check out the US 50 Middle Bridge Openings Schedule page.

The following vehicles are allowed to use the bridges as of Friday, Aug. 30 (a visual guide is linked here):

  • Passenger vehicles
  • Pickup trucks
  • Vans
  • Motorcycles
  • Emergency vehicles, ambulances and fire trucks
  • School buses
  • 3/4 ton or smaller pickups with bumper pull trailers (boats, campers, side-by-sides)
  • Compact Class C motorhomes
  • Small single rear axle box trucks

The following vehicles must use County Road 26 (for more information visit the County Road 26 Detour Information webpage):

  • All Class A motorhomes
  • Larger Class C motorhomes
  • Semi-trucks
  • Commercial buses
  • Pickup trucks with a gooseneck trailer or a 5th-wheel camper or trailer

Lake Fork Bridge Work Update

For the US 50 Lake Fork Bridge (just west of Sapinero), starting Tuesday, Sept. 3, the bridge will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily with pilot car operations and alternating traffic. The bridge will remain open overnight, but there will be periodic traffic holds from 7 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. All legal loads are permissible, but no overweight loads are currently allowed across the Lake Fork Bridge.

County Road 26 (Lake City Cutoff) Detour Information 

A bypass on County Road 26 (CR 26, also known as the Lake City Cutoff) will be open multiple times per day in each direction for local public travel. This bypass is open to anyone traveling to Lake City. CR 26 is a high mountain native surface and gravel road. 

To maintain this as a viable, safe bypass, traffic will be managed using pilot vehicles at certain times of day. See schedule here.

It takes approximately 45 minutes to get to the westbound queue from Lake City. It takes approximately 50 minutes to get to the eastbound queue from Montrose.

Allow 2-3 hours for travel to / from Montrose and Lake City. 

RVs and trailers are allowed on CR 26 as long as long as they meet the State of Colorado legal maximum vehicle dimensions and weights. Learn more about OWOS loads here.

Release times are when the pilot car leaves. You must be in the queue by the start of the release time. For westbound travel, traffic will queue on CR 26. For eastbound travel, traffic will queue on Hwy 50.

US 50 Bypass Route

Photos of CR 26 (Lake City Cutoff)

CR 26 Bypass
CR 26 Bypass
CR 26 Bypass

Resources for Information, Updates, and Questions: