Independent Contractor - October 2019

Colorado Department of
Transportation, partners create
The Mountain Rules for trucks
Independent Contractor
NEWS
October 2019
The Colorado Department of Transportation,
in partnership with the Colorado State
Patrol, Colorado Motor Carriers Association
(CMCA) and in-cab driver alert providers, Pre-
Pass Safety Alliance and Drivewyze, are coming
together to enhance safety for truckers traveling
through the state’s mountainous areas.
The Mountain Rules is a comprehensive,
strategic and safety-focused effort to inform
and educate in-state and interstate trucking
companies and drivers on the challenges of
driving in Colorado’s mountains.
It includes information on potential hazards,
and is a consistent reminder of the need to be
slow, steady and safe for the long haul.
“It’s no secret that our mountains create immense
challenges for semitruck drivers,” said
CDOT
Executive Director Shoshana Lew. “The
Mountain Rules has a simple mission — get
everyone home safely — and this campaign,
which supports CDOT’s Whole Safety–Whole
System initiative, is a major step towards
achieving that goal.”
In addition to an educational effort, The
Mountain Rules consists of infrastructure and
informational improvements, including:
• Signing eastbound Interstate 70 and all
eastbound chain stations, east of the Eisenhower/Johnson
Tunnels, with information on
the brake check locations for truckers.
• Restriping the wide eastbound exit ramp
at the Genesee Park Interchange into a moredefined
short-term truck parking area where
overheated brakes can cool down and equipment
checks can take place prior to the final
descent into the Golden, Colorado, area.
• A new subscription-based, in-cab alert
A tractor-trailer straddles a
runaway truck ramp along I-70
in Colorado. One of the Colorado
ramps, the Lower Straight
Creek runaway truck ramp on
westbound I-70 at milepost
211.83 is the most used truck
ramp in the United States, being
used once a week on average
during the summer months.
system, warning truck drivers about specific
areas where brake failures could occur, and
the location of brake check and runaway truck
ramps.
• Information gathering on the feasibility
of a new ramp and other measures to mitigate
runaway trucks, such as geometric and signage
improvements to the existing Mount Vernon
Canyon Truck Runaway Ramp.
“I want to dispel any misconceptions, myths
or rumors about truck ramps for all commercial
carriers who travel our mountain corridors,”
said CSP Col. Matthew Packard. “Commercial
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