A sprawling road construction project will revamp and expand sections of Peña Boulevard, the road that serves Denver International Airport.

The first phase is focused on the 3.5-mile stretch of road near the airport. Costing $93.5 million, construction is scheduled for January 2020 to May 2022.

Parts of the road’s final approach to the airport will widen from six lanes to nine lanes in total, according to project documents. Jackson Gap Street also will be rebuilt, and its intersection with Peña will be converted to a “diverging diamond” interchange.

The project also includes a free-flowing turn lane that will make it easier for drivers to return to the airport from outbound Peña. The layout is meant to improve the flow of shuttle buses, taxis and passenger vehicles near the airport, but it also would expand the road’s capacity for cars — a fact that drew criticism from transit advocates.

The project also includes new ramps and connections and new informational LED signs, and the city will relocate the ground transportation lot where taxi drivers park. The first phase stretches from near Jackson Gap to the airport.

The roadway work will be done in concrete rather than asphalt, which could cause higher upfront costs but save on maintenance. The construction contract is set to go to Interstate Highway Construction, pending approval by the Denver City Council.

Future phases of the project would cover the rest of the road’s 12 miles to Interstate 70. Currently, that stretch swings between four and six lanes; future construction could bring it up to six lanes uniformly.

The initial project will be paid for by Denver International Airport, which is part of city government but operates on its own stream of money from airport business. The future phases, which could take a decade to build, aren’t yet funded.

Transit questions

Councilman Albus Brooks noted that the construction will come alongside a revamp of the airport’s Great Hall and the Interstate 70 widening project.

“This is all going to be happening at the same time. It’s a lot for the community,” he said. “I think what’s funny is, it’s going to drive a lot of folks to get on the A-Line.”

But airport spokesperson Emily Williams noted that the contractor won’t be allowed to close any current lanes during construction.

Brooks and others also asked about the continued spending on automobiles rather than transit. Transit advocates point out that wider roads attract more drivers and quickly return to overcrowded conditions.

“It sounds like you’re making it much easier for me to drive my car to the airport and park there, right?” Brooks said. “… We want to encourage and invest in multiple ways to get there.”

Bill Poole, senior vice president for planning and design, said the airport wants to build up ridership for the A-Line and other transit, but it’s “only going to capture so many people that that’s convenient to.”

The train could reduce the need for expansion on other parts of the road, but the first phase of the project is needed to improve the flow of traffic from hotels and other potential development clustered near the airport, officials said. Work on Peña also could make it easier to develop near the airport, including for the “aerotropolis” plan.

The project is designed for expected traffic in 2030 and beyond.