Try to avoid traffic and explosions along I-70 in the mountains Tuesday

Drivers should expect significant delays this Tuesday, May 16, near Idaho Springs.

The Colorado Department of Transportation crews will be shutting down both directions of the highway and the frontage roads between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. “as they blast rock.” (We presume they are blowing boulders to smithereens, but maybe they’ll play some AC/DC too.)

While the work may last several hours, total delays shouldn’t be more than an hour, according to CDOT.

The project is meant to reduce the risk that rocks will fall from the cliffs following a “minor rockslide” near Fall River Road last month. Blasting may continue once a week for some time, requiring similar closures.

Crews also will be drilling the face on weekdays — which “allows for a more productive blast — but that work won’t require closures.

And now, explosions: