The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) will temporarily close the I-25 East Frontage Road between Weld County Roads 34 and 32 starting Monday, August 11 at 7 a.m. The closure will last until Wednesday, August 20 at 5 a.m. Crews will use this area for staging and preparation work related to bridge girder installation.
During the closure, northbound traffic on the Frontage Road will be detoured east at WCR 32 to Colorado Boulevard, then north to WCR 34 before heading west back to the Frontage Road. Southbound traffic will take a similar route in reverse, turning east at WCR 34, south on Colorado Boulevard to WCR 32, and then west to return to the Frontage Road.
In addition, I-25 near Mead at Weld County Road 38 will be closed overnight on Monday, August 18 and Tuesday, August 19 from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. This closure is necessary for crews to install new bridge girders as part of ongoing bridge reconstruction efforts.
Southbound I-25 drivers will exit at Colorado Highway 402, travel west before heading south on US Highway 287, then turn east onto Colorado Highway 66 and re-enter southbound I-25. Northbound traffic will use temporary detour ramps merging with the I-25 East Frontage Road; no turns onto or off of WCR 38 will be allowed during these hours. The Frontage Road south of WCR 38 will also be closed with traffic rerouted via Colorado Boulevard.
These closures are part of the larger I-25 North Express Lanes project between Mead and Berthoud that includes reconstructing and widening bridges along this section of highway. According to CDOT: “Full closures increase safety for the traveling public and crews while decreasing the duration of traffic impacts.”
Motorists should expect:
– Full closure of I-25 East Frontage Road between WCRs 34 and 32 from August 11 through August 20.
– Overnight full closures of both directions of I-25 under WCR 38 on August 18 and August 19.
– A shift in southbound I-25 lanes onto new concrete roadway between CO Highway 56 and WCR 38 beginning Monday night, August 18.
The current Weld County Road 38 bridge was built in the early sixties. With plans for a wider interstate below it, CDOT says a larger replacement bridge is needed that includes an eight-foot-wide sidewalk for multimodal connections over I-25. The new structure is being built in coordination with local officials: “The new bridge will also be built ‘on alignment,’ or in the same position as the current bridge, which was decided in coordination with the Town of Mead.” Typically CDOT builds replacement bridges adjacent to old ones so they can remain open during construction; however, this time demolition and complete construction—including roadway tie-ins—will occur while east-west access over I-25 via WCR 38 is closed from June through December next year.
CDOT acknowledged that closing this connection for six months would inconvenience daily users but said: “Ultimately, this decision will invest money in permanent infrastructure in another area of the project and save Colorado taxpayer money.” During this period CDOT plans to keep nearby interchanges open where possible: “CDOT will prioritize keeping the Weld County Road 34 and I‑25 interchange open during the WCR 38 bridge closure to help facilitate east/west movement across the interstate.”
All schedules depend on weather conditions.
