I-10 complete closure to be complicated by other closures

Another full shutdown of Interstate 10 in both directions is on tap this weekend.

It will allow for El Paso Electric crews to complete another project along the freeway. I-10 will be completely shut down in both directions from 3 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, between Sunland Park and Executive Center in West El Paso. In addition, Paisano will also be closed in both directions, further complicating matters.

Getting around on Sunday, especially on the West Side, is going to be difficult, particularly with a huge event happening at the Sun Bowl that afternoon.

Any closure of I-10 and Paisano means North Mesa Street becomes the main relief route, and in this case, the only one. But couple that with a packed house at the Sun Bowl for a truck show and it complicates matters even more.

“We understand it’s an inconvenience,” said El Paso Electric spokesman Eddie Gutierrez. “We know that there is actually a couple of events around the West Side, particularly at UTEP, so we’re asking for people’s patience. Last time we had a very similar project where we closed both sides of the freeway, we were able to finish a little ahead of schedule.”

Complicating matters is the Monster Jam truck show here at the Sun Bowl where more than 50,000 are expected for a 2 p.m. Sunday show. While the freeway is expected to be reopened by the time the show is over, getting there in time could get a little crazy.

“I had no clue,” Felipe Millan said as he stood in line to buy tickets to the Monster Jam Friday afternoon. “That means it’s going to be the streets baby! We are going to be coming from the west side off Castellano. It’s going to affect me a great deal, but the nephews want to go, and if the nephews want go, we are going to go.”

There’s hope they might finish early.

“We can’t predict how our crews will do, but they are going to work very hard to make sure they are on schedule, if not maybe a little early,” Gutierrez added. “But it’s too early to tell at this point how fast we can get the repairs done.”

Gutierrez said the Borderland can expect another full freeway closure in a couple of weeks.