This simulated view looking west over C-470 toward Santa Fe Drive shows RTD's Southwest Corridor Extension curving into Highlands Ranch from Mineral Station. The station in the picture is a future intermediate stop before Lucent Boulevard.

RTD’s FasTracks plan to build an extension to the Littleton light rail line faces few environmental hurdles along the 2.5-mile route from Mineral Avenue to Lucent Boulevard in Highlands Ranch.

The biggest hurdle it faces is being at the end of the line for funding from the overall FasTracks budget, which has a $2.2 billion shortfall trying to pay for $6.9 billion worth of work by 2017.

CDOT Press Release

This weekend and next week, the Colorado Department of Transportation will continue concrete repairs on eastbound C-470 between I-25 and Santa Fe Drive and conduct some minor work on westbound C-470.

This weekend, crews will work from 8 p.m. on Friday, November 6th until 5 a.m. on Monday, November 9th.

CDOT Press Release

This weekend and next week, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) will continue concrete repairs on eastbound C-470 between I-25 and Santa Fe Drive and conduct some minor work on westbound C-470.

This weekend, crews will work from 8 p.m. on Friday, October 23rd to 5 a.m. on Monday, October 26th. During this time, the following closures will be in place on C-470 and major delays are expected:

Eastbound C-470 between Broadway and Colorado Boulevard- The left lane of eastbound C-470 will be closed from 8 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday. Major delays are expected and alternate routes are strongly advised.

Westbound C-470 between University Boulevard and Lucent Boulevard - The left lane of westbound C-470 will be closed from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday only.

Since the concrete repairs require crews to place new concrete, there is about a 10 to 12-hour timeframe in which the concrete has to cure. During this time, the lane closure will remain in place but crews will not be visibly working. This is a necessary process for concrete replacement to ensure the pavement is of high quality and can withstand the heavy traffic C-470 handles. Once the concrete cures, crews will stripe and conduct some other minor work before reopening eastbound C-470.

In addition, there will be various closures Monday, October 26th through Thursday, October 29th:

Monday, October 26th and Tuesday, October 27th: One lane of westbound C-470 between Wadsworth Boulevard and Ken Caryl Avenue will be closed from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. In the evenings, one lane of eastbound C-470 between Quebec Street and Yosemite Street will be closed from 8 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. The ramp from Quebec Street to eastbound C-470 will also be closed on Tuesday from 8 p.m. to 5:30 a.m.. Motorists can take County Line Road to Yosemite Street or I-25 as a detour route.

Wednesday, October 28th and Thursday, October 29th: One lane of eastbound C-470 between Broadway and University Boulevard will be closed from 8 p.m. to 5:30 a.m.

CDOT would like to remind motorists to obey all traffic signs and flaggers and to “Slow for the Cone Zone.” Most fines will be doubled if the infraction occurs in the work zone.

Major concrete repairs on the C-470 bike path between I-25 and I-70 are also underway. As a result, a small section of the bike path between West Alameda Parkway and Rooney Road will be closed as well as the section between Quincy Avenue and Belleview Avenue. Bicyclists will be asked to dismount and walk around the construction zone.

This work is part of an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) project. The $32 million project will repair nine miles of C-470 and then pave the entire length in asphalt. Concrete repairs will also be made along 26 miles of the C-470 bike path between I-25 and I-70.

Castle Rock Construction Co. of Centennial, CO is the contractor for this project, which is scheduled to be complete in July 2010.

In all, Colorado will receive more than $400 million from the Recovery Act for transportation projects and $103 million for transit projects. For more information about how Colorado is putting the recovery act to work, visit www.colorado.gov/recovery. For a list of CDOT’s Recovery Act projects, visit www.dot.state.co.us/arra.

CDOT Press Release

Tonight, the Colorado Department of Transportation will close one lane of eastbound C-470 between Santa Fe Drive and Lucent Boulevard for concrete work. The closure will be in place from 8 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. and delays are expected. Despite the work tonight, there will be no lane closures this weekend due to possible inclement weather.

“We are getting to a point where temperatures may not be warm enough for us to pave so the weekend work will be scheduled on a week to week basis,” said CDOT Project Engineer Scott Smith. “We will continue to work as much as possible when we have warm temperatures, but the majority of the paving operations will likely take place next spring.”

Next week, crews will continue to conduct some minor work during daytime hours that will require a single lane closure on northbound and southbound University Boulevard at C-470 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Minor delays are expected and alternate routes are advised.

CDOT would like to remind motorists to obey all traffic signs and flaggers and to “Slow for the cone zone.” Most fines will be doubled if the infraction occurs in the work zone.

Major concrete repairs on the C-470 bike path between I-25 and I-70 are also underway. As a result, a small section of the bike path between Rooney Road and Alameda Avenue will be closed. Bicyclists will be asked to dismount and walk around the construction zone.

This work is part of an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) project. The $32 million project will repair nine miles of C-470 and then pave the entire length in asphalt. Concrete repairs will also be made along 26 miles of the C-470 bike path between I-25 and I-70.

Castle Rock Construction Co. of Centennial is the contractor for this project, which is scheduled to be complete in July 2010.

In all, Colorado will receive more than $400 million from the Recovery Act for transportation projects and $103 million for transit projects. For more information about how Colorado is putting the recovery act to work, visit www.colorado.gov/recovery. For a list of CDOT’s Recovery Act projects, visit www.dot.state.co.us/arra.

The Colorado Department of Transportation’s spending of federal stimulus money on road projects so far has been spread over 25 contractors, who are handling 40 projects either completed, under construction or under contract.

Another seven projects have money allocated to them under the Obama Administration’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Figures from the end of August show that CDOT has allocated $293.6 million out of its $330 million share of the total of $403.9 million in highway stimulus money coming to state, county and local governments.

Colorado easily met the federal deadline of committing at least half of its stimulus transportation funding allocation by late June. In fact, Colorado met that halfway mark on May 7, according to information from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Concrete repairs beginning this weekend on C-470 will necessitate single-lane closures along nine miles of the westbound side, but CDOT estimates doing this work on weekends will shorten the year-long project by three to four months. The work will take place from 8 p.m. on Fridays to 4 a.m. on Mondays, every weekend except holiday weekends, until Dec. 10 or until inclement weather prevents it from continuing. It will then resume in spring 2010 and go through July 2010.