Flood damage forces lengthy highway closures in southern Colorado

Celia Frazier, The Denver Post on Nov 7, 2026

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DENVER — Drivers and southern Colorado residents should expect two main highways to remain closed for an extended period of time after back-to-back floods damaged or destroyed parts of the roadways earlier this week, state transportation officials said Thursday.

Colorado 151 is closed south of Chimney Rock, and two stretches of US 160, both east and west of Pagosa Springs, were closed as of Saturday, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation. The agency has not provided a timeline for when the roads will reopen.

Several sections of US 160 were damaged in the 30-mile corridor between Pagosa Springs and Durango, including the Piedra River Bridge, about 18 miles west of Pagosa Springs, which collapsed and will need to be completely rebuilt next year, CDOT said. Crews will install a temporary bridge once site conditions allow it.

Floods also washed out sections of Colorado 151 south of the US 160 junction and damaged US 160 in at least four places in the Wolf Creek Pass area between Pagosa Springs and South Fork.

The only way in and out of Pagosa Springs is via US 84, which will route drivers through New Mexico, significantly increasing travel times. That highway was also damaged in the floods, and two areas were being repaired and stabilized, CDOT officials said. Drivers will encounter flagging personnel or temporary light signals guiding traffic.

Several municipal streets in Pagosa Springs remain flooded, and drivers should avoid downtown Pagosa Springs unless they are local residents, CDOT said Thursday.

The state agency received $6.5 million from the Federal Highway Administration, and $5 million from the state for emergency repairs after the first round of flooding caused an estimated $65 million in damage to Colorado 151, US 160 and US 550.