News Releases

Denver Metro Colorado/CDOT Region 6

July 9, 2008

Agreement Reached on the U.S. 36 Corridor
Environmental Impact Statement

CONGESTION RELIEF A PRIORITY FOR FUTURE CONSTRUCTION PHASES

DENVER – Today, agency and corridor representatives from the U.S. 36 Preferred Alternative Committee (PAC) signed a recommendation for the U.S. 36 corridor. The ‘combination’ alternative provides a multi-modal transportation vision for the future, which includes Bus Rapid Transit, managed lanes, highway safety improvements and a bikeway from Denver to Boulder. The alternative was developed through public comment and significant collaboration by all parties of the PAC.

Combined Alternative Recommendation: The U.S. 36 PAC recommended a ‘combination’ alternative that is responsive to public comments and long-term transportation needs that, pending additional analysis, is expected to be adopted as the Preferred Alternative. The following describes the components of this multi-modal transportation recommendation:

Transit

• Ramp and side-loading stations supported by parking facilities and local transit services, with specific premium components to support Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) operations.
• BRT Access to Table Mesa station that reduces transit travel time by transitioning the new managed lane to a General Purpose Lane at a point west of Cherryvale Road.

Multimodal

• One buffer-separated managed lane in each direction of U.S. 36 from Pecos Street to the Table Mesa/Foothills Parkway interchange. The existing reversible managed lane operations will be maintained on U.S. 36 from Pecos to Interstate 25
• Access to the new managed lanes will have separate, at-grade buffer openings between each interchange for entering and exiting traffic.
• The managed lanes will operate similar to the I-25 Express Lanes, providing free access for buses and High Occupancy Vehicles (HOV), while requiring singleoccupancy users to pay a fee. Tolls will be higher in peak drive times to ensure a congestion free trip for users.

Highway

• Ramp-to-Ramp auxiliary lanes for most segments of U.S. 36 from McCaslin Boulevard to I-25
• One new continuous eastbound general-purpose lane from Sheridan Boulevard to I-25.
• One new climbing lane in each direction of U.S. 36 (westbound begins at McCaslin Boulevard; eastbound begins at Table Mesa) to the top of Davidson Mesa.

Bikeway

• Implementation of a Denver to Boulder bikeway, encouraging connections to streets, trails and new developments in partnership with local governments.

Background: The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) and the Regional Transportation District (RTD), in conjunction with the Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Transit Administration, have been studying highway, transit and bike improvements between Denver and Boulder in the U.S. 36 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) since 2003. A Draft EIS was released in August 2007 that evaluated a variety of transportation solutions within two “build” packages and a “no build” alternative for the U.S. 36 Corridor. The majority of public comments requested a transportation solution that further reduced the community and environmental impacts, decreased project cost and still provided for increased mobility improvements.

The U.S. 36 PAC, a 21-member group of agency representatives and elected officials from local cities and counties, was established in 2007 to consider public comment and identify an alternative to be advanced through the National Environmental Policy Act process. The PAC’s consensus recommendation allows the transportation study to be finalized with the support of all agencies and jurisdictions.

Phasing and Implementation Steps: The PAC placed a high priority on congestion relief through the extension of the managed lanes in the initial phase of construction. Implementation phases will be developed based on community priorities, constructability, agency approval, and the availability of funds.

How to Become Involved

1. Attend and participate in upcoming public meetings

2. Go to www.US36EIS.com and submit a comment

3. Mail a comment to: U.S. 36 Mobility Partnership c/o CDR Associates 100 Arapahoe Ave, Suite 12, Boulder CO 80302

ABOUT THE U.S. 36 CORRIDOR: The U.S. 36 Highway Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is identifying multi-modal transportation improvements between Denver and Boulder. The improvements are being considered along an 18-mile highway alignment (U.S. 36 from Denver to Boulder). The Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, in cooperation with the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) and the Regional Transportation District (RTD) are jointly conducting the highway and transit project.