Douglas County and CDOT are partnering on advancing the construction of the C-470 Trail & University Blvd. Pedestrian Grade Separation Project. The objective of the project is to construct a grade separation for bicyclists and pedestrians using the C-470 Trail to cross over University Boulevard. The new bridge will improve pedestrian and cyclist safety by eliminating the need for users of the C-470 Trail to cross University Blvd. at-grade, which currently requires four (4) separate roadway crossings, across a total of eight (8) lanes of traffic. The proposed grade separated C-470 Trail crossing will also improve traffic operations, since the numerous bicyclists and pedestrians currently crossing at-grade, adversely impact signal progression along University Blvd. and traffic entering or exiting the C-470 ramps, especially on the weekends when trail use is highest.
In the summer of 2020, CDOT and the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) announced the Safer Main Streets Initiative which is a state and/or federal funding opportunity focusing on improving safety and multimodal transportation options. On March 19, 2021, Douglas County was notified by CDOT that the C-470 Trail & University Blvd. Pedestrian Grade Separation Project was selected to receive $5.12 Million in state funds, which will fund a portion of the project.
While preliminary design was advanced, Douglas County and CDOT staff negotiated specific project responsibilities which are included in an IGA that was approved by the Douglas County Board of County Commissioners in September 2022. The C-470 Trail is a CDOT asset and will continue to be owned, operated, and maintained by CDOT including the improvements to be constructed as part of this project. However, some project enhancements are being incorporated into the design above and beyond what is typically required by CDOT to reduce long term maintenance burden and increase the structure’s service life. The project is anticipated to be substantially completed on or before December 31, 2025.
