Roadway on Teton Pass ‘catastrophically failed’

Teton Pass is closed to commuters with no estimated time of reopening, long term closure is expected.
Highway 22 at milepost 12 'catastrophically failed'. (Courtesy of Wyoming Department of Transportation)

This story was last updated June 8 at 8:56 a.m. 

Teton Pass is closed indefinitely. 

The Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) announced this morning that the roadway at milepost 12.8 has catastrophically failed, due to a landslide the prior day.

WYDOT crews, along with contract crews from Evans Construction, were working in the area to remove asphalt and construct a detour around cracks first identified in the roadway Thursday., But the landslide continued to move, taking out the whole road.

The incident follows a landslide and mudslide from the prior day that breached both lanes of Teton Pass at milepost 15, near the weigh station on the Idaho side, closing Highway 22.

Wyoming Department of Transportation crews are still clearing the debris from the about 200-foot mudslide, but additional material continues to flow onto the roadway. 

‘Landslides are a type of debris flow when rock or earth moves down a slope; a mudslide is a particularly fast type of landslide. 

A water resource specialist with Teton Conservation District, said in an email that Teton County is in peak runoff, due to very high temperatures during the day and very warm overnight lows.

Bob Hammond, a WYDOT engineer, said that these events can “absolutely” be attributed to runoff season as water is one of three factors that cause landslides.

For up-to-date Wyoming road and traffic conditions, drivers can sign up for 511 at https://www.wyoroad.info/511/511NotifyAnnouncement.html.

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