I-25 widening efforts get organized

Among cyclists and motorists, locals and transplants, and fans of Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler, one opinion is shared by nearly everyone in Northern Colorado.

Using Interstate 25 is a nightmare.

However, ideas on how to widen I-25 from Fort Collins to Longmont to three lanes branch out in different directions from that shared understanding.

A number of efforts to widen I-25 have been met with varying levels of success over the years. But in 2015, increased pressure from residents has for the first time unified Northern Colorado groups working to pool resources and design projects.

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The idea is that Northern Colorado projects will be ready and rise above the other Colorado groups looking to cash in should federal or state money become available.

Construction projects to begin widening I-25’s Northern Colorado pinch points start in spring, offering new hope that the interstate will be expanded to three lanes of travel in each direction by no later than 2035.

“Until something affects you personally, nothing gets done,” Weld County Commissioner Sean Conway said. “Well, it’s affecting a lot of people and they feel it now, so it becomes a priority.”

Here is a look at ongoing efforts to enhance north I-25.

Federal help approved

From recently approved bills awarding millions of dollars to states to competitive grants tied to billions of dollars dangled before ravenous states, the fight over transportation money is fierce.

In mid-December, Congress approved the FAST Act, a five-year transportation bill aimed at eliminating highway bottlenecks such as those on north I-25 to expedite the movement of goods. The bill includes roughly $300 billion for transportation projects and is the first legislation in decades to provide long-term funding certainty for states and local governments.

Of that, Colorado is slated to receive roughly $3.4 billion.

The bill included a “freight corridors’’ designation that over the five years would provide $4.5 billion for a new competitive grant program for nationally significant freight and highway projects.

An amendment to the bill by U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., would have given “high-priority corridors” such as I-25 funding preference under the program, but was not included in the final bill.

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, D.-Colo., is working to introduce a bill he co-sponsored that would establish a $50 billion infrastructure fund with potential to loan state and local governments funds for projects such as I-25 expansion, Bennet spokesman Philip Clelland said.

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., worked on the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, said spokesman Alex Siciliano. Funds from the act helped finance the recently opened U.S. Highway 36 toll road and Denver Union Station enhancements.

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The Colorado Department of Transportation has plans to use the funds to expand north I-25, among other projects. A new highway grant was also created, and Gardner included provisions that would make the U.S. Department of Transportation consider population growth when awarding the grant.

Colorado was the second-fastest growing state in 2015, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

Earlier this year, Gardner said, “advancing the expansion of North I-25 and ensuring that Colorado’s fast-growing population” is among his top transportation priorities.

State support targeted

If no additional funding or grants become available, budget restrictions prevent CDOT from completing the $1.2 billion widening project until 2075. CDOT is, however, planning for the future.

A couple of construction projects starting next year will improve existing north I-25 infrastructure to accommodate three lanes whenever they are built.

At Crossroads Boulevard in north Loveland, crews will expand the overpass to accommodate additional lanes and level the southbound and northbound lanes. The roughly $30 million project will take two years to complete.

In spring 2016, CDOT will build a $9.5 million climbing lane at Berthoud Hill, giving southbound commuters a third lane for a 2-mile stretch that often causes congestion.

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Earlier this month, the public learned about the Fix Colorado Roads Act, an initiative that seeks to funnel $3.5 billion in state general fund money into road and bridges projects across the state. The goal is to find a permanent source of money to couple with a small portion of CDOT’s budget to fund the $3.5 billion bond program.

If passed by the Legislature, the Fix Colorado Roads Act would be referred to the November 2016 ballot.

A similar measure failed Legislature last year, but proponents believe they have more bipartisan backing and a wider coalition this time around.

If approved, north I-25, along with south I-25 and Interstate 70, are areas of priority for funding.

Larimer County pools funds

Larimer County has teamed up with CDOT and other entities to apply for a federal challenge grant that would help pay for bridge enhancements to four bridges across north I-25.

CDOT requested $90 million in improvements for bridges over the Poudre, Big Thompson, Little Thompson and St. Vrain rivers to enhance flood flow capacity of the bridges and widen them to support three lanes in each direction.

If approved, bridge construction would start in spring 2017 with construction to be completed by 2019. The projects could receive any portion of the $90 million ask. The Poudre River bridge has been identified by CDOT as the top priority among the four bridges. The group hopes to hear if, or how much, of the grant it receives by mid-January.

To repair the bridges is to “relieve pinch points” in the overall process of widening I-25, say Larimer County Commissioner Tom Donnelly and county transportation program manager Suzette Mallette.

In a good-faith effort to raise $15 million for the project, county officials proposed to pool the money from funds allotted for road and bridge work from the county mill levy.

Half of that amount goes to municipalities within the county, with the other half going to the county. The proposal asked each municipality to pledge their halves to this project for five years, Donnelly said.

That will bring in $5 million over five years, an amount the county has in reserves and can pay up front if the grant is awarded sooner, Donnelly said. Each council of the the eight municipalities within the county has approved the measure.

The other two-thirds of the $15 million in leverage money would come from CDOT or a private entity. If the other $10 million doesn’t materialize, the $5 million will go toward other projects in the county.

Nonprofits’ ‘year of transportation’

Conway, chairman of the North Front Range Metropolitan Planning Organization, said 2016 “will be the year of transportation.”

The organization has put up $13 million for I-25-related projects, including for the Crossroads bridge and Berthoud Hill climbing lane projects. Conway said the climbing lane should reduce congestion on that stretch of I-25 by 25-40 percent.

The Northern Colorado Legislative Alliance and Fix North I-25 Business Alliance, an organization formed by NCLA, has since last year worked on pursuing funding options for the expansion of north I-25.

NFRMPO and NCLA were among local organizations that helped launch last week’s Fix Colorado Roads Act.

“We’ve been kicking the can down the road for too long,” Conway said. “We’re risking our economy and quality of life.”

David May, with Fix North I-25 Business Alliance, said the organization is focused on identifying “specific funding sources and ally building.” High on the alliance’s list, said May, president of the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce, is securing a permanent transportation funding source such as the Fix Colorado Roads Act.

“If we can figure out the mechanism to fund the bond payments, we still believe bonds are a viable way to pay for highway and interstate improvements,” May said.

Northern Colorado backers of the Fix Colorado Roads Act say there is finally enough bipartisan support in the Legislature, unprecedented regional support and more buy-in from businesses to steer transportation to the consistent and sustainable funding levels needed to pull off large projects.

“Up until the last year, we weren’t organized,” Conway said. “Now we are. We are a tug boat turning this big ship around. And when it gets turned around, you’ll see it goes quickly.”