Teton Pass weight limits adjusted upwards
ROCK SPRINGS, Wyo. (KIFI/KIDK)-Only a few days after it set a 40,000 pound weight limit on trailer truck traffic over Teton Pass, the Wyoming Department of Transportation has raised the limit to 60,000 pounds gross vehicle weight. The change was effective Friday.
WYDOT said that instead of lower weight limits, the department would instead lower maximum speed limits over the pass and close the parking area on top of the pass to utilize it as a mandatory brake check area. Currently, there is only one escape ramp open on Highway 22. It is located at milepost 8.2, about a mile above the closed vehicle arrestor.
"We at WYDOT, as part of our mission, try to accommodate the movement of goods and services to the greatest extent feasible. In this current economic climate, we realize that this mission is as important as ever. The ultimate goal here is to ensure the safety of those using the pass by changing driver behavior," District Engineer Keith Compton said.
According to Idaho truckers, the change will also allow more competitive delivery of goods to the Jackson market from the west side of the Tetons.
WYDOT added that the existing catch-net vehicle arrestor system will be modified and re-opened later this summer. WYDOT is currently pursuing a temporary "sand barrel array" system, which should be in place in the next few weeks. These new temporary safety measures will take place in advance of the construction of the temporary sand barrel array system.
