Just one business day after the Polis Administration formally requested support, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced it will release $11.6 million, or 10% of the total request, through its quick-release process. FHWA first informed the Colorado Congressional Delegation earlier today per protocol. Governor Jared Polis and Department of Transportation Director Shoshana Lew made the full request in a letter yesterday to Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and FHWA Acting Administrator Stephanie Pollack, following a separate submission to the FHWA Colorado Division office.
“We are thrilled to have such close coordination with our federal partners to ensure federal resources are quickly on their way to Colorado,” said Gov. Polis. “Crews and staff across state government are working in all-hands-on-deck mode to deal with the devastating damage to Glenwood Canyon and I-70, and having the same level of support from federal partners at the Federal Highway Administration ensures we can keep working at a rapid pace to restore this economic and recreation highway.”
“CDOT’s maintenance teams have made great progress in recovery operations, allowing our engineers to make similar strides in developing a plan to reopen I-70,” said Director Lew. “Thanks to the fast and strong support of our federal delegation as well as the backing of FHWA, CDOT can continue to work quickly with the assurance that resources will remain available. I want to add a special thanks to FHWA Colorado Division staff who have provided technical support throughout this incident and helped smooth the process to help deliver this quick support.”
Here is Gov. Polis and Director Lew’s letter to Secretary Buttigieg and Acting Administrator Pollack and CDOT’s submissions to the FHWA Colorado Division which was sent yesterday. This follows issuance of two Executive Orders from Governor Polis last week, as well as a letter from the Colorado congressional delegation on Saturday, August 7, 2021 stressing the urgency of this matter to the state.