CDOT expects to finish two-year project between Colorado Springs, Fountain this week

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has scheduled more overnight lane closures this week on the 7.5-mile stretch of Interstate 25 between South Academy Boulevard and Santa Fe Avenue.

But the agency said that this likely will be the last week for them.

As KRDO 13's The Road Warrior reported earlier this month, CDOT plans to complete the two-year safety and improvement project by the end of October, which would be on Halloween on Thursday.

CDOT said that it will alternate closing the left and right lanes of northbound and southbound I-25 from overnight Monday, through overnight Friday.

Crews will spend this week installing signs, applying final lane striping and completing other remaining tasks.

After that, CDOT will consider most of the work to be finished -- which will end the lane closures and detours that drivers have endured.

One benefit of the project is the addition of wider, 12-foot road shoulders.

"It really enhances the safety," said Shane Ferguson, transportation director for CDOT Region 2. "It allows for people that have vehicle troubles to to pull over. It really helps with our emergency services, as well -- where our state troopers and police officers can pull over to the side and feel safe when they have to do a traffic stop. And so, the 12-foot  shoulders are safety across the board for not only the traveling public, but also the emergency services."

The improved stretch of I-25 also has concrete paving, a new center median, new guardrails, bridge improvements and new twin overpasses at South Academy Boulevard.

Earlier this month, crews moved the remaining concrete dividers and moved lanes to their final alignment.

And for drivers who've felt that they've had to travel at a crawl with a 60 mph speed limit in the corridor, CDOT will raise the speed limit to 75 om Wednesday.

However, the limit will be lowered back to 60 during the overnight work.

The I-25 project required around $90 million of the $161 million allocated for four projects in the Military Access, Mobility, Safety & Improvement Project (MAMSIP) designed to improve safety and traffic flow in and out of local military installations.

Local, state and federal funding covered the cost.

For more information, visit: https://www.codot.gov/projects/militaryaccesssafetyimprovements/i25-efficiencycomponent.