FHWA 16-18
Friday, August 3, 2018
Contact: Neil Gaffney
Tel.: (202) 366-0660

Nation's Top Federal Highway Official On Hand for Central 70 Project Groundbreaking

CDOT's largest Public-Private Partnership to provide managed lanes, improved freight mobility

DENVER – Deputy Federal Highway Administrator Brandye L. Hendrickson joined state and local officials today for the groundbreaking of the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) "Central 70 Project," which will improve mobility for Mile High City commuters, businesses, and travelers going to and from Denver International Airport.

"The Central 70 Project will give more options to the people of Colorado along one of the state's most economically important routes," said Hendrickson.  "This is a great example of the innovation America needs to build and maintain bigger, better, and safer transportation infrastructure for 21st-century drivers."

The $1.2 billion project relies on a $416 million loan from the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program, $114 million in Private Activity Bonds allocated by DOT, and $50 million in Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funds from the Federal Highway Administration.

Workers will reconstruct ten miles of I-70 between Brighton Boulevard and Chambers Road, add one new Express Lane in each direction, connect to managed lanes in the metro area, and add intelligent transportation systems infrastructure.  The most heavily travelled route in the state,
I-70 carries as many as 220,000 vehicles every day through the area.  By 2035, that amount is expected to increase to 270,000 vehicles daily.  

The project will also remove an old viaduct, lower the interstate between Brighton and Colorado boulevards, place a four-acre park over a portion of the lowered interstate, and add bridges and connections in a neighborhood over I-70.    

Central 70 is expected to be completed in 2022. It is the largest project ever undertaken by CDOT, and its biggest Public-Private Partnership (P3) to date.  The P3 consists of Kiewit Meridiam Partners, CDOT's High Performance Transportation Enterprise, and the Colorado Bridge Enterprise.

# # #