I-25 Through Pueblo - New Pueblo Freeway

The Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the New Pueblo Freeway details the Preferred Alternative and project phasing for the reconfiguration and redesign of I-25 through Pueblo. The purpose of the Record of Decision (ROD) is to document the FHWA’s decision on the New Pueblo Freeway Project.

What is the New Pueblo Freeway?

In 2000, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) initiated a study of I-25 through Pueblo, Colorado. The study integrated the transportation planning process with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) process to evaluate improvements to the I-25 corridor through Pueblo.

Through this NEPA/planning process, which included input by City of Pueblo engineering and planning staff, transportation conditions along I-25 through Pueblo were described, needs were identified, and transportation problems were defined. Consistent with NEPA and the regulation of the Council on Environmental Quality regulations, an active public participation program captured community values held by the citizens of Pueblo in a Vision Statement that asks FHWA and CDOT to respect the traditions and trends of the Pueblo community as they develop solutions to roadway problems. The culmination of this planning effort is called the New Pueblo Freeway project.

The purpose of the New Pueblo Freeway project is to: 1) improve safety by addressing deteriorating roadways and bridges and unsafe road characteristics on I-25; and 2) improve local and regional mobility within and through the City to meet existing and future travel demands. The need for the project results from the highway’s age and the design practices at the time it was built, which has led to the safety and mobility problems described in detail in the EIS.

I-25 Bridges Over Ilex and UPRR Design Build

The first project of Phase 1 of the Preferred Alternative is moving forward into design and construction.  The structurally deficient Ilex Viaduct will be replaced with two separate bridges. The project will maintain full access off Exit 98A to Ilex Street until future phases of construction. Preserving this existing interchange requires removal of the existing Ilex Street. To retain access to the northbound ramps, a portion of the ultimate Stanton Avenue extension is included to connect these ramps to Santa Fe Avenue. A minimal amount of I-25 reconstruction will be required to tie the ultimate bridge location (under the shifted I-25 alignment) back into the current I-25 alignment until subsequent phases of the project are constructed. Improvements to the southbound on-ramp from 1st Street and the northbound off-ramp to 1st Street are also included in this project, along with the viaduct replacement on I-25 between the Ilex Viaduct and the 1st Street Bridge. The Ilex Bridge to 1st Street on I-25 project will be the first project for construction to begin in the summer of 2014.

The link address is: http://www.coloradodot.info/projects/ilexbridges