Colorado Springs to reconfigure part of Vickers Drive to increase safety

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Neighbors and drivers are glad that the city repaved Vickers Drive between Academy and Union boulevards this summer, but are less excited with more changes starting next week.

In hopes of reducing crashes and increasing safety, the city will reconfigure the nearly mile-long segment: Reducing the total number of lanes from five to three.

The street currently has temporary markings that will be replaced by permanent striping.

By eliminating a lane in each direction, the reconfiguration will widen the remaining two traffic lanes, the center turn lane and the two bike lanes.

Todd Frisbie, the city's head traffic engineer, said that the existing traffic lanes are narrower than the city requires -- which contributed to crashes -- but the street also had issues with speeding and street racing.

"Making these types of changes can reduce crashes, bring better compliance to the speed limit, and any time you can sort of bring drivers closer to the speed limit and and eliminate the differential on speed between cars that are not on a multi-lane road, you're just going to end up with a safer road," he explained.

However, Frisbie added that feedback from public notices the city recently sent out, were less than positive.

"They're asking us why we're doing this," he said. "They say that we're going to make their drive longer; that we're going to increase congestion. And I tried to address that -- saying that we believe that the actual impact would be relatively minor."

Under the reconfiguration, the existing through traffic lanes will be a foot wider to meet the city code requirement of 11 feet; the center turn lane will be three feet wider (13 feet total); and the bike lanes will be three feet wider (six feet total) with a buffer area to separate from the traffic lanes.

Frisbie points out that the changes will make the affected stretch of Vickers consistent along its entire length, west of Academy and east of Union.

A private contractor will do the work, and the city expects it to begin and end next week -- weather permitting.