More construction for CU

CU and the City of Boulder are undertaking the Broadway (Euclid to 18th Street) Transportation Improvements Project.

According to the project website, this year-long construction project will create a pedestrian and bicycle underpass beneath Broadway at 16th/Euclid, expand the north and southbound transit stops and create a signalized intersection at Broadway and 18th Street.

According to the project website, the construction is aimed at benefiting CU and Boulder by improving efficiency, safety and transit. It is also supposed to reduce conflicts between types of transportation as well as create a more aesthetically pleasing area. Construction projects of this scale usually require a crane hire and other machinery and work zone equipment.

Some CU students said they still have concerns about the project.

Corinne Kannenberg, a 21-year-old senior history and studio arts major, said she worries about how the road construction would affect traffic on a busy street like Broadway.

“One thing I thought would be an issue is the traffic congestion,” Kannenberg said. “They already did construction on Broadway and that really congested traffic.”

Eric Bartram, a 22-year-old senior business major, expressed similar concerns and also worried about the budget.

“I think the traffic congestion during its construction is going to be absolutely monstrous,” Bartram said. “I am not sure how, with all the new construction on campus, [CU] can keep affording to doing these projects. I know that the budget here is pretty tight.”

CU and the city found what they hope is a solution to the obvious traffic issues this project will create: by doing near-campus construction in the summer. Megan Rose, the communications specialist for planning, design and construction at CU, explained the time line of the project.

“The project will technically begin in spring of 2011 and will continue into June of 2012,” Rose said. “There will be some utility work up until that point. The university work, work done on Euclid in front of the UMC, will mostly be done during the summer, so there is less impact on university people.”

However, she said the planners were unable to eliminate all traffic problems.

“For the duration of the project, Broadway will be down to one lane in each direction,” she said. “The intent is to never have to completely close Broadway. The area will see effects similar to those in the North Broadway project that the City of Boulder just completed. Inconvenience in traffic, but not much else.”

Rose also said that this project should stay within budget.

“The current budget is $7.4 million,” she said. “Although the economy is not great for other things, it is a great time to build. Even with the crane rental and the other equipment and staff needed, many of our projects are coming in on budget, or in some cases, under budget. There should be no reason to bust the budget.”

The cost for this project is mostly being provided from the federal transportation funds which is contributing $3.4 million. CU is paying $1.6 million, which is a combined value of land donations and $600,000 coming from the university, half from CUSG and half from VCA, Rose said.

According to the summary of a study done by the City of Boulder’s Fastracks Local Optimization the transit area on Broadway is currently overcrowded, the Broadway path is a major crossing point and a large access point to the CU campus, and Broadway is a very busy street. A new layout could reduce all of the issues those factors can create.

For more information on the Broadway (Euclid to 18th) Transportation Improvements Project, visit the project website.

Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Isa Jones at Alexandra.i.jones@colorado.edu.