CONTACT:
Alex Shelley, Communications Executive
Office: 970-626-5549 x212
Cell: 970-209-5593
alex@smpa.com
(July 24, 2017) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GALLOPING GOOSE TRAIL CLOSURE FOR ELECTRIC GRID RELIABILITY PROJECT POSTPONED
The Galloping Goose Trail, which was scheduled to be closed this week, will remain open until the weather allows for construction operations related to the electric grid reliability project. When construction does commence, the trail will be closed from Skunk Creek to Ilium Road from 6 AM to 6 PM, Monday through Friday. The trail will be open on the weekends. The status of the trail will be well marked with signs. The trail closure is to ensure safety while construction work is under way. The public is advised to observe all posted notices.
The work that required full closures of Ilium Road is now finished. Ilium will continue to see single-lane closures until the project is complete.
The construction is part of the Telluride / Mountain Village Reliability Project, which will provide an electric power line loop to connect to existing San Miguel Power Association (SMPA) service lines which currently serve the town of Telluride and parts of Mountain Village. This power line loop will provide more options for restoring power in case of equipment failure or natural damage like that which occurred over last President’s Day weekend when a boulder tumbled into a transmission line, knocking out power for nearly 24 hours. With the loop feed in place, SMPA will likely be able to restore power in minutes rather than hours after an event like the President’s Day weekend rock fall.
Road and trail users can keep track of project updates here.