Work resumes on I-80 Winter Freight project

RAWLINS, Wyo. — Work is resuming on the Wyoming Department of Transportation’s Interstate 80 Winter Freight project between Rawlins and Laramie on Wednesday.
Simon Contractors have already started work building almost 100 new semitruck parking spaces in both the Fort Steele Rest Area (mile marker 228) east of Rawlins and the Quealy Dome truck parking area (mile marker 290) west of Laramie for a total of almost 200 new parking spaces.
The Fort Steele Rest Area, including parking areas, will remain closed during construction. Flaggers may be present to direct local traffic through the area. Please avoid parking on the on- and off-ramps in the Fort Steele interchange as it will likely impede work at the rest area. Once the project is complete, the rest area will reopen.
Traffic on I-80 will see minimal impacts as crews start structure work and begin building climbing lanes on I-80. There will be short lane closures in the eastbound lanes over Halleck Ridge (mile markers 250.5-252.5) west of Elk Mountain and westbound lanes between Cooper Cove and Quealy Dome (mile markers 279.5-281.5) near the Albany County line.
Watch for lane closures, reduced speed limits and other traffic changes during construction. Avoid distractions like cell phones when driving through work zones.
First started in the fall of 2020, the $20 million project is funded by a federal Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant and is expected to be complete in October 2022.
Project scheduling is subject to change, including due to inclement weather and material or equipment availability.