Fears Of “Catastrophic Failure” Push CDOT To Replace Avalanche Mitigation System On Loveland Pass

A $2 million fund to replace the avalanche mitigation systems along Loveland Pass on U.S. Highway 6 has been authorized by the Transportation Commission of Colorado, as the existing remote-controlled systems present a risk of catastrophic failure.

As reported by Summit Daily, the current avalanche mitigation systems were installed in 2015 along slide paths known as the Seven Sisters. These systems are apparently known to be unreliable, presenting an elevated risk of catastrophic failure. The systems have experienced three failures on the east side of Loveland Pass, including one which occured last February.

Last winter a vehicle was caught in an avalanche from the Seven Sisters slide path, closing Loveland Pass for several hours. Fortunately nobody was injured in this incident. According to CDOT Division of Maintenance and Operations Director Shawn Smith, catastrophic failure of these systems does not pose a risk to the public or anyone else.

Essentially, when failures occur, the system self-implodes and fails to function as it’s supposed to. When that occurs, a maintenance team is forced to hike up and remove the cylinders from the system, using a compressed-gas cannon to maintain the avalanche paths instead.

The $2 million in funding will cover the cost of replacing the existing systems along Loveland Pass, though the replacement systems have not yet been determined.

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