The Colorado Department of Transportation, in partnership with La Plata County and the City of Durango, is holding a public meeting Thursday evening to solicit input on a long-term plan to improve sections of highway leading south and west from Elmore’s Corner, where State Highway 172 and U.S. Highway 160 intersect.
The “Access Control Plan” will address the corridor of Highway 172 running north-south from Elmore’s Corner to mile post 22.6, where the highway meets County Road 302. It will also address the corridor of Highway 160 running from Elmore’s Corner west to Farmington Hill, at mile post 88.3.
CDOT describes the document as a “ long-term corridor visioning plan that includes preferred highway access locations and their designs and acts as a guidance document, which will be implemented over time, as adjacent properties redevelop.”
The plan, completed by SEH Planning & Engineering, is intended to facilitate the planning of projects along the major corridors in order to reduce crashes and increase capacity and travel times.
A slide deck on the plan states that the section of 160 in question had 23,000 average daily travelers in 2020, a number that is expected to grow to 30,560 by 2040. Likewise, 172’s number of average daily travelers is expected to grow from 8,000 to 10,200 over the same period.
Much of the plan focuses on consolidating access from properties along the highways or relocating access points to secondary roads.
The plan would close direct access to 160 from properties east of Three Springs Boulevard and instead funnel traffic onto a system of frontage roads on either side that run parallel to the highway.
It also includes notes on future single point urban interchanges at the 160/Three Spring Boulevard intersection and at Elmore’s Corner, however details remain sparse.
“The actual intersection treatment has not gone into the design stage yet and is likely more than 10 years out,” said CDOT Spokeswoman Lisa Schwantes in an email to The Durango Herald. “As this intersection becomes a priority and funding is made available, CDOT will be able to plan the design and we will know more about the details of what this intersection will look like.”
Thursday’s meeting is the latest in a series of steps before acceptance of the plan slated for next summer.
The meeting will be held from 5-7 p.m. Thursday at the Faith Community Church located at 1400 Hwy. 172.
Representatives from the involved agencies will provide information and answer questions on the purpose and need of the Access Control Plan, as well as present the long-term goals of the project, the county spokesman said in a news release. The public is welcome to provide feedback on the plan.
The plan is available on the county’s website at tinyurl.com/yhsrv5kv.
rschafir@durangoherald.com
