Work begins on Highway 16 and Interstate 25

It took a lot of planning, cooperation and lobbying for money, but a bunch of movers and shakers said Tuesday it was all worth it.

Work has officially begun on the long-awaited rehabilitation of congested Colorado Highway 16 and its dilapidated junction with Interstate 25.

The project, to be completed by spring 2010, is designed to ease chronic congestion leading into Fort Carson's Gate 20; end dangerous traffic backups on Interstate 25; address growing commuter traffic from new subdivisions; and, help the Army post speed troops and material to Peterson Air Force Base.

During a traditional groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday morning near the interchange, Russell George, executive director of the Colorado Department of Transportation, acknowledged the long delay between conception of the project in the late 1990s to the actual earth-moving work that began about two weeks ago.

But, he said, the wait is over: "It works when we all pull together."

George and other speakers said the project benefited from cooperation among local, state and federal lawmakers of both parties, military officials and the Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments, a coalition of three counties and more than 20 municipalities.

George said a vote by the coalition in 2005 naming the project the No. 1 priority in the region was critical in speeding up the work.

More than 20,000 vehicles per day cross nearby Fountain Creek on Highway 16 to get to and from Fort Carson and the interstate, with peak traffic exceeding the capacity of the road and often leading to gridlock.

That situation became untenable when the military announced in 2005 and in 2007 that five combat brigades would be transferred to Fort Carson in the coming years. That expansion is expected to swell the ranks of soldiers from 11,000 to more than 28,000 by 2011, with another 40,000 family members moving to the area.

Even without the influx of new soldiers, residential growth in the Fountain and Security areas would have increased traffic at the interchange to 30,000 vehicles a day by 2030, transportation officials said.

"It truly was a vision that got us here today," said Fort Carson's Maj. Gen. Mark Graham.

Graham, referring to the chronic traffic snarls soldiers must endure to get in and out of Gate 20, said the project will be a "huge stress reliever."

Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar, who with other members of Colorado's congressional delegation helped secure funding for the project, said the work will improve the lives of soldiers, help Fort Carson do its job and tighten the military's ties with Colorado Springs, Fountain and Pueblo.

Expanding Highway 16 to four lanes and building stronger bridges will make it easier for the Army to move troops and heavy equipment to Peterson Air Force Base via Powers Boulevard for rapid deployment, officials said. Carson is one of three Army installations in the country designated as rapid deployment forces.

The project will be done in two overlapping phases. The first phase, from now to spring 2009, will widen Highway 16 to four lanes from Carson's Gate 20 to Syracuse Street to the east; separate the southbound exit off I-25 to provide a direct connection to the post gate; and, construct bridges over I-25, Fountain Creek and Crews Gulch.

The second phase, from September to spring 2010, will widen Highway 16 from Syracuse Street to U.S. 85 and include a reconstruction of that interchange; add an auxiliary lane on U.S. 85; relocate frontage roads; and construct a new bridge over U.S. 85 and the railroad line.

Most of the project's funding, more than $50 million, will come from the state via the Colorado Department of Transportation. The federal government will contribute $11 million and the area council of governments will add $2 million.

Rich Gonser, project manager for CDOT, said the work will be a challenge simply because of the need to keep 20,000 cars flowing through the construction sites each day.

He said most of the work will be done during the day, with brief lane closures when absolutely needed. Any work that will seriously impede traffic will be done at night, he said.