Busy Road Construction Season Expected

Detours. Congestion. Orange cones. Noise. Dirt. Slow speeds. The list goes on.

In Windsor, we’re ramping up for one of the busiest road construction seasons we’ve experienced. The goal of this newsletter is to ensure residents: 1) understand the considerations that help strategize roadway projects; and 2) know when, where and what to expect with this year’s planned roadway improvement projects.

Before any major roadway project breaks ground, it goes through a planning process. During the planning stage, town staff seek input from residents. In 2019, the town created its first-ever Transportation Master Plan, a document that relied on staff, consultants, and the community to, pardon the pun, provide a road map for projects. Staff collect data to analyze each improvement, looking at everything from accidents to vehicular traffic counts to pedestrian and bicycle movements.

Once improvements are identified, the town works on logistics and funding. Town engineers research the physical environment and seek

ways to bundle projects so they don't have to close the same road multiple times.

Annual maintenance projects such as the curb and gutter replacement happening on 15th Street this summer help extend the life of a roadway so the town can avoid costlier and more time-consuming road replacements in the future. These projects vary in nature and are aimed at saving taxpayer dollars in an effort to provide a safe, reliable roadway.

Development-driven projects anticipate the demand they put on a roadway. These projects are partnerships with developers. An example of this type of project is the pedestrian bridge that’s being installed across 7th Street near Hilltop Drive. The bridge will provide a safe pedestrian crossing and

add trail connectivity from several subdivisions in south Windsor to the nearby trail system. Development fees offset the cost of these projects. In general, the majority of these projects include lane widening and turn lane improvements.

Projects happening on stateowned highways require approval and funding outside of the town’s jurisdiction. This summer, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has several projects happening in Windsor. One project is the asphalt overlay planned for Highway 257 / North 7th Street between Main St. and the railroad tracks to the north. This area is known for its pocked pavement and potholes.

As part of this project the town is working with CDOT to incorporate buffered bike lanes. To be efficient, the town bundled this project with an impending waterline replacement project, curb and gutter work, and a pedestrian crossing improvement at the Birch Street intersection. By working with CDOT, the town is able to work on several improvements in one summer.

This keeps projects from taking several years and redundant closures to complete. It’s also a more efficient way to use taxpayer funds.

Timing is also important. In Windsor, we see more traffic on Main Street when school is in session.

That’s why the ancillary work—the type of work that does not require

major closures—along Highway 257 / North 7th Street is happening now and why closures related to the waterline replacement and asphalt overlay—two projects that need to happen on the same road and will cause a traffic disruption—will wait until summer.

Town staff will continue to work toward solving problems, keeping Windsor moving forward, and

strategically preparing for the growth that has hit this quadrant of the state.

And while there’s not enough room in this newsletter to explain all of the considerations that inform roadway improvements, these were some of the most important.