Month: April 2025

Scott Harrison

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — The overnight Wednesday closure of three blocks of Motor Way is a sign that the corridor and safety improvement project near Interstate 25, along South Nevada Avenue and South Tejon Street, is nearing completion.

During the closure between 7 p.m. and 5 a.m., crews installed new street signs and repainted lane markings.

The $9 million project started last spring and was supposed to be finished by the end of last year but was slowed due to weather delays in late fall and early winter.

Overall project goals include reducing traffic congestion and improving traffic flow through the I-25/Nevada/Tejon interchange, and increasing safety for a large number of pedestrians, cyclists and scooter riders in the area.

The upgrades are a welcome sight for people like Jason Hotchkin, who’s disabled.

“That’s going to be great, then,” he said. “Because I was homeless for a very long time — 17 years, off and on. So, it makes me feel much safer — especially now that I’m confined to this (wheelchair).”

Officials also hope the upgrades will eliminate deaths to pedestrians hit by vehicles; several recent victims were some of the many homeless people who frequent the area.

Crews have widened sidewalks and bike lanes; in fact, the bike lanes at intersections are so wide that some drivers have mistaken them for right turn lanes.

Workers have improved traffic safety and flow by installing a new center median on Nevada, eliminating some left turns on Nevada and adding lanes on the northbound and southbound connector roads.

But Christopher Wright, a local driver, isn’t satisfied.

“They need to do more repaving on South Nevada,” he said. “And there’s still too much congestion. Enough that it’s hard for people to just stop at a store or a restaurant.”

Wright isn’t aware that the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has started a six-month project to repave the south end of Nevada between Brookside Street and Fort Carson’s main gate.

Because the interchange is heavily-traveled, drivers can expect more daytime congestion until the project’s expected completion in two weeks.

Other improvements include repairs to the Motor Way bridge over Cheyenne Creek, and construction of a pedestrian bridge across the creek, along the southbound connector road.

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Bradley Davis

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo (KRDO) – Linemen with Colorado Springs Utilities put KRDO13’s Bradley Davis inside a bucket truck and walked him through training drills to give an inside look at how they keep the lights on in the 719 in anticipation of National Linemen Appreciation Day on Friday.

Colorado Springs Utilities linemen demonstrate a pole-high rescue drill for KRDO13

“It’s like a giant jungle gym. You get to play on the heights everyday, and you get the satisfaction of keeping the lights on,” head lineman Denton McCombs said.

The linemen said they wanted to help the public better understand what they do. They work with voltage of up to 230,000 volts. That’s compared to the 120 volts in your standard outlet.

They say they do about 70% of their work managing high voltage switchers in the ground. When they do go up, they still have to climb by hand and harness when bucket trucks can’t reach the line.

It’s a hard job, but it’s one all the linemen who spoke with KRDO13 said they love to do.

It’s the best job ever. I wish I could be up here more,” lead foreman Jay Underwood said.

Watch the story to get an up-close look at some of the most dangerous maneuvers the Southern Colorado linemen are trained to do so that residents have power when damage strikes.

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