CDOT Worker Dies in I-25 Accident/T-REX Waiting on Light Rail/E-470 Flyby Finished

A CDOT worker was killed in late August in a traffic accident on a construction site on I-25 near Pueblo.

CDOT Worker Killed on Interstate 25 Near Pueblo

Charles "Chuck" Mather, 34, a Colorado Department of Transportation worker from Beulah, was killed on Aug. 30 when a tractor-trailer plowed into the road surfacing crew with which he was working.

Mather, who was operating a rototilling machine when he died, had been with CDOT since June 2005.

Four other people, including another CDOT worker, were also injured in the accident, which happened at 10:45 a.m. in the northbound lanes of Interstate 25, two miles south of Colorado City.

Another CDOT worker, Gerald "Jerry" Buchanan, 48, of Boone, jumped to safety off the side of the roadway, falling about 50 ft into a creek bed below, shattering both his ankles. Three other members of the CDOT crew were uninjured.

Mather is the 24th CDOT employee killed in a work zone since 1951. His wife, Leena, 39, is expecting their first child next month.

T-REX Celebrates End of Cone Zones

After more than five years of cone zones, the $1.67 billion Transportation Expansion Project celebrated on Aug. 23 the substantial completion of both highway and light rail construction.

Dignitaries and elected officials attended the milestone event, which culminated with Gov. Bill Owens removing the final construction cones to signify the end of major construction and long-term closures.

The event also marked:

• The reopening of the Downing Street off-ramps from northbound Interstate 25;
• The reopening of the Washington street off-ramps from southbound I-25; and
• All highway ramps and travel lanes opening in their final alignments for the traveling public.

The event kicked-off the countdown leading up to the last component of T-REX - the Southeast Light Rail - which will hold its grand opening on Nov. 17.

T-REX - the largest design-build project in the state - is a multi-agency cooperative project among the Colorado Department of Transportation, Regional Transportation District, Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration numerous cities, counties and local jurisdictions.

The project was managed by Southeast Corridor Constructors, a joint venture of Kiewit and Parsons Transportation Group.

E-470 Completes $40M I-70 Flyby

The E-470 Public Highway Authority opened in late August the two-mi.-long flyby over Interstate 70 that eliminates stops for E-470 through-drivers.

The new flyby reroutes E-470, bypassing the existing traffic signals at the intersections with I-70 and two local streets. Ramps to the former route will continue to serve as access for I-70, Colfax Avenue and 19th Avenue.

The $40 million project, which started in January 2005, finished ahead of schedule and under budget. It was made possible by an intergovernmental agreement between E-470, the city of Aurora and the Colorado Department of Transportation.

The completed flyby construction work by Lawrence Construction Co., the design-build contractor, is the first phase of an anticipated system-to-system interchange complex that will occur over many years. DMJM was Lawrence's subcontractor for design. The build-out will progress in stages, as funding becomes available.

Construction has already begun on the next stage, a northbound E-470 to westbound I-70 flyover ramp. Work on the flyover ramp is scheduled to be complete in fall 2007.

Five-Year Broadway Bridge Project Completed

The Colorado Department of Transportation opened the new Interstate 25 bridge over Broadway in August. Built in three phases, it took approximately five years to complete the new $60 million, 1,680-ft-long bridge, which replaced one of the worst bridges in the state highway system.

When the first project began in October 2001, CDOT anticipated that construction of the entire bridge would take approximately seven years and at least four phases because of piecemeal funding.

Since then, CDOT received $42.5 million in federal funding to keep the project on track, nearly 71 percent of the total cost. The federal funds not only ensured that the deteriorating Broadway bridge would be replaced, but it also allowed CDOT to accelerate the completion by several years to meet the T-REX project schedule and minimize impact on the community.

Smoky Hill Road Bridge Completed

Drivers on Smoky Hill Road in Aurora have an easier time traveling over E-470 with the completion of a year-long, $3.5 million widening of the overpass, which boosted Smoky Hill on the east side of E-470 to six lanes up to the intersection with Arapahoe Road.

The project was spearheaded by the E-470 Public Highway Authority in conjunction with the city of Aurora and several area developers, including Alberta Development Partners. Lawrence Construction Co. was the contractor.

New Program to Assist Underutilized Businesses

The Colorado Department of Transportation was awarded a grant by the Federal Highway Administration to fund the new Business Opportunity and Workforce Development Program.

CDOT was one of six recipients in the country to receive this funding.

The BOWD program is a two-year pilot to better equip Disadvantaged Business Enterprises to bid, win and successfully participate in CDOT highway projects. It will select 15 to 20 underutilized Disadvantaged Business Enterprises from Colorado that are well positioned to increase their capabilities to compete for and fulfill CDOT highway contracts. These DBEs will be required to meet selection criteria and be assessed to determine their business needs.

CDOT will announce this month the DBEs selected to participate. For more information, go to www.dot.state.co.us/eeo/bpindex.htm.

New I-70 Interchange Opens in Grand Junction

The new Interstate 70 at 24 Road interchange bridge opened in August in Grand Junction. The $5.8 million project, which began in September 2005, involved reconstruction, safety and capacity improvements.

The work, contracted to Hamon Contractors Inc. of Denver, included the construction of two roundabouts, the widening of 24 Road, and construction of the new bridge.

The interchange improvements were designed to enhance mobility and increase safety on and around the interchange, which receives average daily traffic counts of 11,000 vehicles currently and a projected count of 17,000 within 20 years.

SEMA Begins S.H. 67 Reconstruction

SEMA Construction Co. of Centennial is working on a $13.3 million CDOT project to reconstruct approximately five miles of State Highway 67 between Deckers and West Creek. The roadway is scheduled to reopen to the general public by Oct. 31.

More than 30 sections of S.H. 67 were damaged or destroyed after West Creek, which parallels the highway, flooded on July 7.

In addition to building a temporary road, the project consists of debris cleanup, road reconstruction, culvert repairs, new retaining walls, channel work and new signage.

New Interchange Open at I-25 and 144th Avenue

A new interchange at I-25 and 144th Avenue opened in Westminster in late August, giving drivers in the north metro area easier access to the booming region.

The $21.7 million project was jointly funded by the cities of Westminster and Thornton. The two cities also partnered to build the interchange at 136th Avenue and I-25, which opened in 2004.

The new interchange improves transportation mobility for Thornton and Westminster residents and provides greater access to the rapid development along the north I-25 corridor.

Felsburg, Holt & Ullevig acted as the design and construction management firm on the project, which was constructed by Jalisco International. Coloco handled the landscaping.

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