Twenty-five years ago this month, Ames started a project to widen Highway 82 through Snowmass Canyon near Aspen, Colorado.
Ames crews reconstructed the existing two-lane roadway that hugged the pristine Roaring Fork River. Two additional lanes were terraced into the steep hillsides above the existing highway. The project required significant crushing, blasting, paving, and drainage construction.
The challenges of the tight corridor and steep terrain were compounded by the area’s environmental sensitivity. Areas outside the immediate footprint of the new roadway were strictly off-limits. To construct an access road, an expert hoe operator needed to think like a mountain goat, according to the project superintendent.
Work at Snowmass Canyon was often an all-hands-on-deck effort, with Ames team members doing whatever needed to be done, regardless of the job title. Overcoming many challenges, Ames crews completed the project one year ahead of schedule.
