New 'quadrant' opens as shortcut between Eighth and Cimarron
Tentatively called the “quadrant roadway” - an official name has not yet been decided - it connects at Eighth Street a few hundred feet south of the intersection and at Cimarron Street/Highway 24 a few hundred feet east. The roughly 800-foot long, four-lane segment is expected to handle about 15,000 vehicles a day. According to the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), this traffic diversion will reduce congestion by 20 percent at Eighth and Cimarron on weekdays and 40 percent on weekends. The shortcut became possible after a defunct hotel was torn down on a 4.6-acre property CDOT had bought southeast of Cimarron/Eighth. The new road is included in the
A casual observation a few hours after the July 26 opening revealed that vehicles are having no problem finding the new segment. “So far, so good,” said Don Garcia of Wilson and Company, a CDOT project consultant, but added that the project team will be observing it in the coming days to see if any changes are needed. Regarding maintenance, Garcia said an agreement is being worked out between the city and CDOT on how that should be handled. Here are some aspects/features about the new road: - A stoplight is at either end. - At Eighth Street, the signal lines up with the access to the Colorado Place shopping center. Note: The center was recently sold, and attempts
- At the Cimarron/quadrant signal, westbound highway vehicles are given the choice of going straight (two through lanes) or left (two turn lanes onto the quadrant). Meanwhile, eastbound quadrant vehicles have two right-turn lanes onto eastbound Cimarron. There is no left to go westbound at that point. - An exclusive right turn has been striped for traffic on northbound Eighth to go east on the quadrant. Note: The northbound right turn at Eighth Street remains, but it has been closed for concrete upgrades roughly through the end of August. See Westside Pioneer article at this link. - An “outside” right turn has been built for the southbound I-25 off-ramp. It's designed to let westbound cars navigate more easily into the two left turn lanes at the Cimarron/quadrant stoplight. - A curb cut gives vehicles travelling west on the quadrant a way into the Acorn gas station. Note: Because of the interchange project, CDOT removed the station's former access off Cimarron. Acorn owner Charles Ochs said he believes that overall the changes will prove “safer and better,” although he's not sure yet if his station will be harder to get to or easier. - Because CDOT anticipates that the quadrant will mean fewer lefts from westbound highway traffic at Eighth, CDOT has removed one of the two Cimarron left turn lanes there.
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