Various lane closures are scheduled for South Academy Boulevard in Colorado Springs as part of ongoing work under the Military Access, Mobility & Safety Improvement Project. The closures will take place from Sunday, Nov. 23 through Tuesday, Nov. 25 between 7 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., and on Wednesday, Nov. 26 from 7 a.m. to noon, between Venetucci Boulevard and Milton Proby Parkway. These closures are necessary to allow crews to install signage and complete remaining roadway, traffic signal, and utility tasks. Despite the lane restrictions, two lanes of traffic will remain open in both directions.
Additionally, mobile lane closures will occur along both north- and southbound South Academy Boulevard between Venetucci Boulevard and Milton Proby Parkway starting Monday night at 10 p.m., continuing until midnight on Tuesday.
Construction activities will pause at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 26 and resume on Monday, Dec. 1 in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.
The South Academy Boulevard Widening Project targets improvements along a southern stretch of this major arterial road from the I-25 interchange past US 85/87 to near Milton E. Proby Parkway (which links with Powers Boulevard/CO 21). The project aims to expand an approximately 1.5-mile section from two lanes to three in each direction to help ease congestion issues that recur in this area. Other planned upgrades include improved drainage systems, lighting enhancements, new striping and wider shoulders, adjusted merge lanes, sound barriers, and bridgework. El Paso County is overseeing the management of this project with completion expected by early 2026.
According to the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), a safety assessment was conducted for this corridor “to evaluate the magnitude and nature of safety problems and analyze the causes of crashes.” CDOT states that these transportation improvements “are mitigation measures to reduce crashes, improve infrastructure, and address physical deficiencies that contribute to crashes in the corridor.” Over a span of two decades following completion, CDOT estimates fewer deaths, injuries and crashes across all four corridors included in the Military Access, Mobility & Safety Improvement Program (MAMSIP).
The broader program seeks to deliver safer mobility along key routes including I-25, Colorado Highway 94, South Academy Boulevard, and Charter Oak Ranch Road while supporting economic stability for the region. The effort is partially funded by an $18 million BUILD grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. According to CDOT: “The delivery of these improvements will strengthen and enhance the redundancy of strategic movement between the nationally significant El Paso County military installations of Fort Carson, Peterson Space Force Base, Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station, and Schriever Space Force Base.”
Further information about ongoing or upcoming construction can be found at codot.gov/projects/militaryaccesssafetyimprovements.
