CDOT delays US 550 shutdown near Silverton to ease morning travel

Early drivers had a short window to slip through Molas Pass before US Highway 550 closed for the day between Silverton and the overlook, a timing change meant to keep morning traffic moving through the San Juan Mountains.

Colorado Department of Transportation pushed the full closure to 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, June 1, giving commuters and other early travelers a chance to clear the corridor before crews shut down the narrow stretch south of Silverton. The agency had originally planned to close the road from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., then adjusted the schedule on May 29 to better accommodate morning travel between Silverton and Durango.

The closure covered Mile Points 64 to 70, a six-mile segment of US 550 where there is no shoulder and only limited room to work. CDOT said the full shutdown was required for worker and motorist safety while crews completed chip seal operations on the highway.

After the one-day closure, the same corridor was set to switch to one-way alternating traffic for the next three days. Drivers were told to expect full stops, pilot-car control, reduced speeds, and delays of 10 to 15 minutes through the work zone, along with the possibility of loose stone damage in the treated area. Similar chip-seal work on the highway in 2025 had already shown how quickly this route can bog down, with notices warning of as much as 40 minutes of extra travel time and up to 15-minute delays.

That matters well beyond the Silverton-Durango run. CDOT has described the Coal Bank Pass and Molas Pass corridor as a vital connection for Silverton and a popular route for recreation and sightseeing, with the road also serving travelers bound for Telluride and Ridgway. The western alternate route adds roughly an hour of driving time, turning a normal mountain transfer into a much longer day.

For hikers headed to trailheads, campers rolling toward backcountry sites, and scenic drivers chasing the high-country views, the practical answer was simple: go before 8 a.m. if possible, or plan for the detour and the slow crawl through the work zone. Even a six-mile maintenance project on this stretch can ripple through an entire day in the Four Corners backcountry, and this one did exactly that.