A large highway project in Colorado, seeing the improvement of more than 60 miles of a corridor of Interstate 25, is receiving an unprecedented $510 million in funding.
That support is coming through the Build America Bureau, which is a part of the federal Department of Transportation, funding a transportation project which both state and local leaders in Colorado have long hoped to see made reality.
As planned, the project will also see the building of 52 miles of express toll lanes between Denver and Fort Collins.
In a release issued by the Transportation Department it is noted that the project will result in improved travel times, the rehabilitation of older rail crossings and structures, and enhanced bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure.
The $501 million, in the form of a low-interest loan, will additionally “correct geometric deficiencies, improve safety, and replace aging infrastructure,” Heather Paddock, director of the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Region 4, said in a statement.
The Build America Bureau is designed to support transportation infrastructure projects across the country. In doing so, the agency accesses grants and credit opportunities for state and municipal transportation projects.
The corridor project has been long in the planning stage and is regarded as a reflection of increased vehicular traffic in the Denver area in recent years. According to the Colorado Transportation Department, Interstate 25 between Denver and Fort Collins sees upwards of 240,000 vehicles a day.
The plan, notes the Denver Gazette, is to have “three lanes of traffic, both ways, the entire way between Denver and Fort Collins by 2028.”
By Garry Boulard
