Crews have begun the remaining construction work at the US 6 and Wadsworth Boulevard interchange in Lakewood, a project that will swap out the decades-old cloverleaf design for a diamond interchange with a single loop ramp. Drivers in the area should expect daytime slowdowns as flaggers direct traffic through single-lane and frontage-road closures while the work continues.
The project sits near Mile Point 281 on US 6, at and around the Wadsworth Boulevard interchange, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation. Construction extends along Wadsworth Boulevard between 4th Avenue and Highland Drive, and along US 6 from the eastern interchange ramps west to Meadowlark Drive, per the Colorado Department of Transportation's latest update. Despite the active work zones, business and residential access in the corridor is expected to remain open throughout construction.
At the heart of the project is a redesign of the interchange itself. The agency's plan calls for changing the interchange configuration from a cloverleaf to a diamond interchange with a loop ramp in the northwest quadrant, according to the City of Lakewood's project page, which also notes the work falls under Phase 4, the final phase of the overall project.
Bridge Reconstruction Tied to Growing Traffic Demands
Alongside the interchange redesign, the structurally deficient US 6 bridge over Wadsworth Boulevard is being reconstructed. The bridge work is intended to provide long-term solutions for increasing traffic demands as the Denver metropolitan area grows, the agency's Facebook post states. The new design also aims to improve safety and allow for longer on- and off-ramps, a change meant to help traffic merge and exit more smoothly than the current setup allows.
The interchange's limitations trace back to its origins. Constructed in the early 1960s and later expanded in 1970, the existing design and configuration of the interchange and roadway within the project limits have not kept pace with traffic and multi-modal travel demands, according to a traffic report from the Colorado Department of Transportation. That aging infrastructure is part of the broader rationale for the overhaul now underway at the interchange.
What Drivers Can Expect in the Work Zone
For now, the practical impact for Lakewood commuters is slower trips through the corridor during work hours. Motorists should expect slowdowns during daytime work hours, and construction will involve some single-lane and frontage-road closures directed by flaggers, the department's post notes.
Anyone tracking broader traffic patterns in the corridor can find historical and current counts through CDOT's Traffic Data Explorer, which lists 22 monitoring stations across the system. The agency anticipates completing the remaining work in late 2029, so Lakewood drivers should plan for an extended stretch of daytime detours and flagger-directed closures as the interchange takes shape.
