When was the last time you were driving in a Denver neighborhood and had to slow down for speed bumps?
Speed bumps, or “speed cushions” in urban planning circles, aren’t very common in Denver. In 2022, the city installed its first-ever public speed bumps along stretches of Galapago Street, Perry Street and 25th Avenue. The installations were a test for whether the common road feature could make neighborhood streets and bikeways safer.
The city has slowly added more speed cushions to its streets. And now, streets in Westwood and Athmar Park are next on the list.
Denver City Council approved a year-long contract last month with Rodriguez Construction for about $633,000. The contractor will be responsible for carrying out the Westwood-Athmar Park Neighborhood Transportation Management Program, which launched in 2021 to build safer streets in the two southwest neighborhoods.
The project will install rubber speed bumps, tubular markers, rubber curbs, and paved traffic circles around the neighborhoods. The construction will be done in two phases. The first one will start sometime by September, though city officials don’t have a date yet.
It will include:
- Signage and striping at Knox Court from West Nevada Place to West Kentucky Avenue.
- Bikeway enhancements at West Kentucky Avenue from Lowell Boulevard to Federal Boulevard
- Bikeway improvements at Ohio Avenue from South Clay Street/West Kentucky to South Vallejo Street
- Traffic circle at Ohio Avenue and Pecos Street
Phase 2 will start in 2026, including:
- Signage and striping at Irving Street from Dakota Avenue to Alaska Place
- Signage and striping at Via Verde
- Pedestrian improvements at Westwood Park
- Signage and striping at Patton Court and Ohio Avenue
- Intersection enhancements at Lowell Boulevard and Ohio Avenue
- Signage and striping at Ohio Avenue and Irving Street
