All lanes on I-25 over Palmer divide NOW OPEN!

[MCRoads]

A road construction project that finished ahead of schedule? Amazing!

[zachary_amaryllis]

i guess what i never understood about that, was why they called it 'the gap'. the highway is continuous.

cool beans tho. i know before, one accident and your trip is hosed. divert to 83 or 105.

[SD Mapman]

i guess what i never understood about that, was why they called it 'the gap'. the highway is continuous.

Is it referring to the surrounding topography, i.e. I-25 goes through 'the gap'?

[MCRoads]

i guess what i never understood about that, was why they called it 'the gap'. the highway is continuous.

Is it referring to the surrounding topography, i.e. I-25 goes through 'the gap'?

I believe that is correct.

[will_e_777]

I thought it was called the gap because it was the only remaining part of I-25 between Denver and CS that was 4 lanes.

[Elm]

I thought it was called the gap because it was the only remaining part of I-25 between Denver and CS that was 4 lanes.

This is how I've heard of it, and only after CDOT started using it for the "Mind the Gap" tagline and studies. Apparently the Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments used it a bit earlier in a resolution and priority name, though. Maybe someone else before?

It was a pleasant surprise for things to open up early--a nicer mirror to when they pushed expected completion back from '21 to '22. Nice to have the speed limit raised (mostly to 70mph) to closer to traffic speeds since the lanes were put in their final alignment (well above 70 whenever possible).

I've been through each way in the express lane once. In both directions, I was in behind someone going about the speed I wanted to go, which was comfortable for me, but we picked up one car each way that wanted to go faster; southbound, that car entered and exited the lanes over the double white line. I feel like that could be typical of these, maybe even more than the Denver-area express lanes, where it's a relatively long distance to be caught behind or in front of someone in the express lane, or where something holds back the GPLs (like when you get a slow passing or people driving next to each other for miles).

[DenverBrian]

The "gap" was the gap in 6+ lane freeway between Denver and Colorado Springs.

Speed limit through most, if not all, of this will be 75 mph.

[CtrlAltDel]

I was just on this stretch in June, and I have to admit, I'm surprised it's done. The construction routings were crazy, to say the least.

[zachary_amaryllis]

only thing that bugs me about this, and the similar project closer to me ...

... is that it doesn't really add additional lanes, unless you have or want to spend money (or have a carload of people, which no one has). and there was discussion up-thread about what happens if you get stuck behind a slowpoke in these lanes, or stuck in front of a muffler-diver who wants to imprint his license plate into your bumper.

i suppose you could pass at one of the exit/entry areas but that seems.. wrong.

[zzcarp]

only thing that bugs me about this, and the similar project closer to me ...

... is that it doesn't really add additional lanes, unless you have or want to spend money (or have a carload of people, which no one has). and there was discussion up-thread about what happens if you get stuck behind a slowpoke in these lanes, or stuck in front of a muffler-diver who wants to imprint his license plate into your bumper.

i suppose you could pass at one of the exit/entry areas but that seems.. wrong.

This bugs me as well, as well as it did the El Paso County commissioners who partially funded the project only to be told by CDOT that toll lanes or nothing.

That said, there is a general purpose improvement that will help. From Greenland south, there are now three GP lanes in each direction in addition to the toll lanes. These will be used as truck climbing lanes over Monument Hill, but they are continuous lanes usable by anyone.

[MCRoads]

My thoughts on the whole "stuck in that lane for miles"  dilemma is that it is a non-issue. All that is stopping you from moving between the lanes is a rumble strip. It isn't like the 495 HOT lanes in DC where there are bollards in that gap. Granted, it is a toll lane, so you shouldn't treat it like a normal lane, but if you are stuck behind an unusually slow car, then you can probably just pass them. As long as you don't do it where one of the toll readers are, you should be fine.

[Bobby5280]

I don't think you can just freely weave in and out of an express toll lane. If that was the case everyone would just weave out before reaching a toll gantry. Physically you might be able to drive across the rumble strip. But will a highway patrol unit that sees you doing so allow you to get away with it?

In Texas there is a growing number of tolled express lanes setups where the express lane is only 1 lane wide. Very often those lanes are hemmed in with concrete Jersey barriers. If there is a slow-poke puttering along in those express lanes he's definitely going to piss off anyone behind him. The tolls aren't cheap. It would be pretty annoying paying that premium only to be going slow or slower than the traffic in the general purpose lanes.

I don't mind single HOV lanes separated only with double painted lines. But single premium express toll lanes suck. And the single express lanes divided by concrete barriers suck even worse. Those should be 2 lanes wide bare minimum to allow passing. Or just don't build them at all.

[Elm]

Tolls start January 17. The toll for the whole corridor with an ExpressToll transponder is $3.75 6am-9pm and $1.50 overnight ($5.63 and $9.46 by license plate, respectively). Details and a cost-per-mile comparison to other express lanes in this memo.

And a few articles: KRDO, Gazette

[DJStephens]

I don't think you can just freely weave in and out of an express toll lane. If that was the case everyone would just weave out before reaching a toll gantry. Physically you might be able to drive across the rumble strip. But will a highway patrol unit that sees you doing so allow you to get away with it?

In Texas there is a growing number of tolled express lanes setups where the express lane is only 1 lane wide. Very often those lanes are hemmed in with concrete Jersey barriers. If there is a slow-poke puttering along in those express lanes he's definitely going to piss off anyone behind him. The tolls aren't cheap. It would be pretty annoying paying that premium only to be going slow or slower than the traffic in the general purpose lanes.

I don't mind single HOV lanes separated only with double painted lines. But single premium express toll lanes suck. And the single express lanes divided by concrete barriers suck even worse. Those should be 2 lanes wide bare minimum to allow passing. Or just don't build them at all.

If there is an incident, i.e. a crash inside one of those cattle shutes, it will be a mess to access and clear wreckage.   Sometime similar was done, on the SB I-25 Exit 1 University Ave off ramp, and believe it will only be a matter of time before a serious rear ender and wreck will occur there.   With entrapment of vehicle occupants and wreckage.   

[Bobby5280]

It has been nearly 3 years since that horrible 133 car pile-up on I-35W in Fort Worth. Six people were killed. The accident took place in the Southbound express/toll lanes. Motorists started wiping out when the road began freezing before dawn. The concrete Jersey barriers helped trap vehicles in place. There is only so much room on the shoulder (assuming a crashed vehicle could move after banging into Jersey barriers).