COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Construction crews are expected to open Chaparral Road on the city’s eastside by Friday, completing a final phase of the Barnes Road improvement project, a PPRTA2 funded project that made major improvements to Barnes Road and other connecting roadways.
The project, which started construction in February 2020, rebuilt Barnes Road between Powers Boulevard and the Homestead Trail crossing, just east of Solar Ridge Drive. In addition to repaving four lanes of Barnes Road, improvements included:
- Median, sidewalks, turn lanes and stormwater infrastructure on Barnes Road where there weren’t any before
- Overhead utility lines were moved underground
- Lowering part of Barnes Road by seven feet, improving safety on the steep hill
- Signalized intersection with left turn lanes at Barnes and Rio Vista Drive/Chaparral Road
- Improved curb and gutter, and new pavement on a section of Jeffery Road, which connects Barnes to the Old Farm neighborhood
- Rebuilt Chaparral Road, connecting Barnes to Jeffery Road. Chaparral had been closed for three years due to the lack of roadway infrastructure and right-of-way concerns.
Work on Barnes was completed in July, allowing crews to focus for the past few weeks on rebuilding Chaparral Road. Final striping of Chaparral is expected Thursday.
Colorado Springs voters approved the project in 2012 as part of the PPRTA-2 “A List” of road construction projects. The project budget was approximately $3.25 million.
“The timing of this project matches the rapid development in the area, letting us improve access and safety to local businesses and neighborhoods,” said Kevin Diekelman, project engineer for the City of Colorado Springs. “We are particularly grateful for the patience of our neighbors in the project area—residents, businesses and their customers—who had to deal with our construction closures and utility impacts while we all navigated the pandemic.”
Construction was led by Pyramid Construction, with design by SEH, public information by Hayward LLC, and project management by the engineering firm AECOM.
For more project information, visit ColoradoSprings.gov/BarnesRoad.