US 6 Bridges Project kicks off Feb. 14 with full closure of US 6

February 12, 2014 - Denver Metro Colorado/CDOT Region 1 - Major work on the Colorado Department of Transportation’s (CDOT) US 6 Bridges Design-Build Project begins Friday, Feb. 14, with a full weekend closure of US 6 from I-25 to Sheridan Boulevard.

This work, originally scheduled for the weekend of February 7 – 10, was postponed due to winter weather. The highway will be closed starting at 9 p.m. Friday, February 14 until 5 a.m. Monday, Feb. 17.

"This project will bring not only needed transportation improvements to west Denver, but it offers the opportunity to help connect neighborhoods on both sides of the US 6 corridor," said Denver City Councilman Paul Lopez.

The $98 million project will replace six obsolete bridges on US 6 between Knox Court and I-25, improve traffic movements in the I-25 and US 6 interchange and enhance driver safety by eliminating several traffic weave movements along US 6 between Federal Boulevard and I-25.

“We are very excited to get this project started,” said Kevin Sullivan, CDOT Project Director. “These critical improvements have been a long time in the making and will make the roadways much safer and more efficient for local residents and commuters alike.”

Beginning the evening of Tuesday, February 11 through Thursday February 13, crews will be implementing nightly lane closures in both directions of I-25 between Alameda and 8th Avenue. Crews will restripe lanes and put temporary concrete barriers in place to shift travel lanes to the outside. This shift will create a work zone in the center median of I-25 to support various construction activities planned for the US 6 Bridges Design-Build project. Various lanes along I-25 will be closed beginning at 9 p.m. each night and continuing until 5 a.m. the following morning as crews move one lane at a time to the outside. This work is weather dependent and subject to change.

In conjunction with these lane shifts, the through lanes on I-25 will be reduced to widths of 11 feet while the acceleration and deceleration lanes on both sides of the highway will be reduced to widths of 10 feet. These lane width reductions will be in place throughout most of the US 6 project. Moving I-25 traffic to the outside will provide room to build the center median pier for the new off-ramp bridge that will span I-25 to take northbound vehicles onto westbound US 6. Storm sewer system upgrades will also be made in the center median of the highway while traffic is shifted to the outside. Motorists are advised to follow posted speed limits and to go Slow In The Cone Zone.

During the weekend closure, crews will work day and night to take down the Knox Court bridge, remove a portion of the Federal Boulevard bridge and relocate an overhead power line; activities that would each require separate highway closures. Crews will also remove about 7,000 feet of center median barrier and put temporary barrier in place to shift traffic to the south side of the highway. It would take about 20 nights to do this work if it weren’t done during this weekend closure.

During the closure of US 6, east and westbound through traffic can use US 285, I-70 or C-470, while local traffic can use Alameda or Colfax Avenues as detour routes.

When the highway reopens Monday morning, travel lanes will be narrowed and shifted to the south, so motorists should drive with care. The following closures will also still be in place:

  • The Knox Court bridge over US 6 will be closed for about three months for reconstruction.
  • The Lowell Boulevard on-ramp to eastbound US 6 and the westbound US 6 off-ramp to Lowell will be closed for about three months while this bridge is rebuilt.
  • The Bryant Street on and off-ramps will be closed for about one year to build the collector-distributor roads on both sides of US 6.
  • The Federal Boulevard bridge over US 6 will be reduced to two lanes in each direction and the eastbound US 6 off-ramp to Federal Boulevard will be reduced to one lane.

All construction activities are weather-dependent and subject to change. For updated project information, visit http://www.coloradodot.info/projects/US6Bridges, call 720-881-5540 or email [email protected]

The US 6 Bridges Design-Build Project involves improvements along 6th Avenue from approximately Knox Court on the west through the BNSF railroad track bridge just east of I-25.  The project, which was part of the I-25 Valley Highway FEIS completed in 2006, includes building new bridges over Bryant Street, the South Platte River, BNSF railroad tracks, I-25, and over US 6 at Federal Boulevard and Knox Court, as well as improvements to Barnum Parks and a realigned off-ramp from northbound I-25 to westbound US 6. Substantial project completion is planned for August 2015.