Colorado Springs will test a new road design reducing the lanes along Colorado Avenue through the heart of Old Colorado City, in what city officials say will be the biggest update to the west-side neighborhood in 40 years.

Beginning in June, the city will restripe the road from four lanes to three, with one direction for traffic each way and an extended center lane for turning. The new design will cover a roughly two-mile stretch of Colorado Avenue between Limit and 31st streets.

The first phase of the project is expected to cost $375,000 and will be paid for through the Pikes Peak Rural Transportation Authority’s extension approved by voters in 2022 as a safety improvement.

“Historically, Colorado Avenue does have an issue with higher speeds, a lot of rear-end collisions and T-bone (collisions). By reconfiguring the road from two through-lanes to having that center turn lane, it provides a lot of vehicular safety,” said Ryan Phipps, the city’s capital improvements manager.

The city will start restriping on the east end of the road in June and progress west by a few blocks a day, Phipps said.

The new design will also add about 30 parking spaces to Old Colorado City by allowing parking along longer stretches of the curb. The new parking spaces will be metered.

In July, the city will add temporary islands in the new center lane to help pedestrians cross the road. The crosswalk near Colbrunn Court will get additional protection, and construction crews will add three more islands between Colbrunn and Limit, Phipps said.

Adam Stepan, president of the Old Colorado City Downtown Development Authority, said the revitalization district wanted to make it easier for visitors to get into and around the historic section of Colorado Springs.

“They come here to get out of their cars, to park their cars and feel like this is a walkable space with restaurants that they’re locally supporting, boutiques that they’re locally supporting,” Stepan said.

The city will have the new road design in place for up to a year as a test period before a second phase of improvements in 2027. The next phase will make some of the road changes permanent, as well as renovating the streetscape in three blocks of Old Colorado City.

City staff will be at Territory Days this weekend to collect initial information about how residents use Colorado Avenue and their biggest concerns about the road. Once the new design is in place this summer, the city will conduct additional surveys to gauge the reaction to the improvements.

The city will collect data on traffic speeds, traffic accidents and the reception to the changes from businesses and residents, Phipps said.