Drivers navigating seemingly endless construction cones along south Academy Boulevard can expect change Monday evening with the partial reopening of the Pikes Peak Avenue intersection, a road that’s been closed since the summer.

The entire northern portion of the south Academy construction from Bijou Street to Airport Road is also making progress reaching the 50% complete mark, after facing delays related to poor soil and an old landfill beneath the road that had to be mitigated, said Gayle Sturdivant, acting public works director for Colorado Springs.

The work on the old landfill has been finished, but crews are still facing challenges from clay soil and unexpected problems with utility lines, she said. Some of the water lines are in much worse condition than anticipated and must be replaced, she said. Crews are also finding undocumented utility lines that prompt design changes or that must be removed, she said.

The city is working to put in new utility and storm drain lines under the road.  

In addition to causing traffic headaches, the construction has also prompted complaints from businesses in the area. The segment is home to The Home Depot, a 7-Eleven convenience store, Springs Korean Market, among many others. Sturdivant said she fields about one or two complaints a week from businesses. City staff have put in signs to help direct drivers and referred business owners to the Economic Development office for assistance.

Right now, the city is urging the contractor to focus on this northern segment of construction and expects crews will finish on time in the middle of 2025, as planned, Sturdivant said. 

In the short term, crews will be moving south closer to the intersection of Airport Road, where she expects they will need to excavate and replace clay soils, she said. The partial reopening of Pikes Peak Avenue means both drivers traveling east and west will be able cross Academy at Pikes Peak for the first time since the summer. 

Drivers northbound or southbound on Academy will not be able to take left turns on Pikes Peak, but all other turns will be open, a diagram shows. 

The southern portion of south Academy construction from East Fountain Boulevard to Jet Wing Drive is moving more slowly. It is about 10% complete, Sturdivant said. 

The city is “exploring options to get the southern phase constructed faster,” she said. 

She could not provide more details at this time, she said. 

The whole project is still expected to come in on budget at $62 million, paid for through a 1-cent sales tax collected by the Pikes Peak Rural Transportation Authority.

It was a high priority for the tax-collecting authority, because of the poor condition of the road. 

“Academy was an old state highway that was about 70 years in age, with really poor pavement. It had a lot of subsurface settling that just needed to be addressed,” Sturdivant said.