CDOT Receives Best in the West National Transportation Awards

June 13, 2018 - Transportation Matters

DENVER– The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has received recognition for two projects from the western region’s America’s Transportation Awards competition. The CDOT projects won in the Best Use of Technology and Innovation and Best Quality of Life/Community Development for the I-25 and US 24/Cimarron Street Interchange Design-Build project and the Linking Lookout-US 6 and 19th Street project.  

  • I-25 and US 24/Cimarron Street Interchange Design-Build project received the Quality of Life/Community Development award for medium projects (projects costing between $25 million and $200 million). Improvements made as a part of this project included:

    • A reconstructed I-25 providing an improved highway alignment, and improved ramps acceleration/deceleration lanes and shoulders for better I-25 operations

    • Reconstructed new and wider I-25 bridge structures

    • Enhancements of the interchange traffic flow, sight distances, and safety operations

    • A new connection between 8th Street and US 24 providing up to 40 percent improvement in traffic capacity in that area; and

    • Better trail connections, improved water quality, and aesthetic enhancements.

    • For more information, visit www.codot.gov/projects/archived-project-sites/i25cimarronDB

"The I-25 and US 24/Cimarron Street Design Build Project is a bright example of CDOT team effort and working with the stakeholders to achieve a great project for the community," explained Karen Rowe, CDOT Region 2 Transportation Director. "The project team was challenged and they came through in a big way, largely due to the great partnerships between all involved including Kraemer North America, Tsiouvaras Simmons Holderness (TSH), the design build team who were led by the CDOT team and their consultants, the citizens, elected officials and the traveling public, who are the beneficiaries of this good work. We couldn't be more proud."

  • Linking Lookout—US 6 and 19th Street project received the Best Use of Technology and Innovation award for category for medium projects. Improvements made as a part of this project included:

    • Create a grade-separated, unsignalized interchange at US 6 and 19th Street

    • Lower US 6 approximately 22 feet on its current alignment, under 19th Street allowing 19th Street to remain at existing grade

    • Build an extended lid (bridge structure) to separate pedestrian and bicycle traffic from vehicle traffic on US 6. The lid includes landscaping, trails and park amenities to help connect the neighborhoods west of US 6 with the city on the east side

    • For more information, visit www.cityofgolden.net/live/linking-lookout/

“The partnership between the City of Golden, the Colorado School of Mines and CDOT began with a goal to make Golden safe and easily accessible and our collaboration elevated the Linking Lookout more than just your average transportation project,” said Paul Jesaitis, CDOT Region 1 Transportation Director. “There are no other bridges like this in the state of Colorado. This bridge links Golden’s downtown with its residents, Lookout Mountain trails and has a state of the art park where people can sit, walk and play. The Linking Lookout project truly addresses multimodal advances to the fullest extent, and that’s really important to CDOT as well. This project aligns with CDOT’s values, which include safety, customer service, people, integrity, excellence and respect. This is the heart of all that we do and that’s why this proved to be such a rewarding partnership.”

Sponsored by AASHTO, Socrata, AAA, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the 11th annual America’s Transportation Awards competition recognizes transportation projects in three categories: Quality of Life/Community Development, Best Use of Technology and Innovation, and Operations Excellence.

Winners in the three remaining regions will be announced throughout the summer. The three highest-scoring projects from each region will be included in the “Top 12.” Those 12 projects will compete for the Grand Prize, selected by an independent panel of industry judges, and the Socrata People’s Choice Award, chosen by the general public through online voting. The top two winners also receive $10,000 cash awards, to be donated to a charity or scholarship of the state DOT’s choosing. Online voting begins Aug. 30. The winners of the top two awards will be announced Sept. 23, at the AASHTO Annual Meeting in Atlanta.

Learn more about the nominees and the competition at www.AmericasTransportationAwards.org

TRANSPORTATION MATTERS – Transportation impacts us every day—it can be as obvious as a pothole, traffic congestion or road closure, or as inconspicuous as transportation’s impact on the cost of groceries.

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