WYDOT crews battle spring storm; I-80 and other secondary roads reopen

Wyoming Department of Transportation crews reopened sections of Interstate 80 and other secondary roads Friday evening west of Cheyenne following a spring snowstorm.

As of 7:30 p.m. Friday, all sections of I-80 in both directions have reopened for travel. All secondary roads are also open for travel.

Motorists are reminded to visit WYDOT’s 511 Travel Information website or call 5-1-1 for the latest road and travel information.

The storm started impacting Wyoming earlier this week, dumping heavy wet snow throughout the I-80 corridor.

The potentially record-breaking spring snowstorm, which began Thursday, led to the closure of sections of I-80 and other secondary roads.

Ralph Tarango, the district maintenance engineer for District 1, said around 3 to 4 feet of snow was on I-80 in places in southeast Wyoming, and crews brought a rotary plow to help clear the road.

A rotary plow is a plow capable of removing large amounts of snow off the roadway and resembles a large snowblower. They are usually used for clearing seasonally closed roads like the Snowy Range Road.