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Council reviews updated regional transportation priorities, asks staff to bring replacement resolution
Summary
City staff presented proposed changes to Thornton’s regional and subregional transportation priorities (last adopted 2022) to guide grant advocacy and project coordination with CDOT and regional partners. The updates consolidate I‑25 projects, add new projects including 120 Eighth & Riverdale and an extension to Highway 2 on 80 Eighth Avenue, and
Thornton staff presented proposed revisions to the city’s adopted regional and subregional transportation priorities — a non‑ranked list used to guide regional advocacy and discretionary grant requests — and asked council for direction to bring a repeal-and-replace resolution forward for adoption.
Staff described the purpose of the update as aligning Thornton’s priorities with ongoing regional planning (CDOT’s 10‑year/statewide plan and the regional transportation plan update) and coordinating with the Adams County subregional forum and the Metro Vision process. Staff emphasized that the list is not a prioritized ranking because different funding “silos” (federal discretionary grants, state, MPO) require different project packaging.
Key proposed changes discussed by council and staff included: - Consolidation of I‑25 projects (from I‑270 to Colorado 7) into broader programmatic language rather than listing many discrete segments. - Addition of 120 Eighth Avenue and Riverdale Road as a new project (staff noted a March briefing will bring more detail). - Extending the 80 Eighth Avenue project to Highway 2 (rather than stopping at Dahlia) to reflect its regional role as a corridor to the airport and eastern connections. - Extending Colorado 7 to I‑276 (I‑76) in recognition of regional interchange planning and Brighton’s interchange plans at I‑76. - Adding Vision Zero safety improvements as a broad category to pursue federal and state safety grants. - Updating 100th Avenue boundaries to seek funding across the river to US‑85 and affirm continuing priority for Thornton Parkway (Riverdale Road to I‑76) and 136th Avenue (Québec to I‑76). - Adding microtransit/transit connections to destinations outside Thornton to support mobility goals in Thornton’s Transportation Mobility Master Plan. - Adding I‑270 (I‑25 to I‑70) to the list to reflect travel patterns of Thornton residents, even though the corridor lies outside city boundaries.
Staff noted that during the previous TIP cycle the city secured more than $69 million in funding that directly benefited Thornton and that those successes stemmed from being on regional lists. Council members asked about right‑of‑way, railroad crossings, and coordination with Commerce City and Adams County — staff reported Commerce City and Adams County have advanced interchange planning and right-of-way acquisitions for the US‑85/100th/120th corridor and that progress is incremental.
Councilors expressed support for microtransit options and for keeping regional connections that help residents and freight access eastern corridors and the airport. Council gave staff direction to prepare the repeal-and-replace resolution and return it at a future council meeting for adoption.
No final adoption vote occurred at the planning session; staff will return with a formal resolution for council action.
