Max Construction

The Spring Creek Trail  between Mason Trail and College Avenue has been closed for approximately two weeks and reopens on Saturday, May 18. 

Work on the Xcel Energy West Main Natural Gas Pipeline Replacement Project begins on May 6.  The area impacted will be on Thunderbird heading west along the north side of the street to McClelland and will continue in the southbound lane of McClelland to south of Swallow. This will be a flagging operation. Please be mindful of construction workers while driving in this area.

On May 13, Xcel will close McClelland from Drake Road through Swallow for two to three weeks.

The Xcel project is not part of the MAX Bus Rapid Transit project. For project updates on the Xcel Energy west main natural gas pipeline replacement project, call 855/875-7633.

The intersection of Swallow Road and McClelland Drive will be closed beginning Monday, May 13, 2013.  The closure will last approximately two weeks, into late May, as crews reconstruct the intersection as part of the MAX Bus Rapid Transit system construction project. 

East-west traffic on Swallow Road will be detoured to Shields Street or College Avenue, then to Drake or Horsetooth Roads.  North-south traffic on McClelland Drive will be detoured to Drake or Horsetooth Roads, then to College Avenue or Shields Street.

Just west of the closure area, the Mason Trail crossing at Swallow Road will remain open but sidewalks near the construction area will be impacted. Pedestrians on affected sidewalks will be directed to safely detour around the closure area.

This schedule is subject to change due to unforeseen circumstances or extreme weather. Please give yourself extra travel time when navigating detours.

Traffic Impacts - New This Week:

• Pitkin Street, east of Mason Street
  Pitkin Street will close for utility work on Thursday, May 23, and last approximately three to four weeks. Please watch for posted detour routes.
• Spring Creek Trail between Centre Avenue and Remington Street
  The trail reopens to bikes and pedestrians on Saturday, May 18.
• Swallow Road at McClelland Drive
  Closed to all directions for intersection reconstruction. Pedestrians, please watch for posted detour routes around the closure area. The intersection will reopen by end of day on Friday, May 24.

Traffic Impacts - Ongoing:

• Northbound Mason Street between Laporte Avenue and Maple Street
  Occasional right lane closures while station construction is underway at Downtown Transit Center.
• Northbound Mason Street, north of Mountain Avenue
  Occasional right lane closures while construction is underway at the Northbound Mountain Station.
• Southbound Mason Street, south of Mountain Avenue
  Occasional right lane closures while construction is underway at the Southbound Mountain Station.
• Southbound Mason Street, south of Olive Street
  Occasional right lane closures while construction is underway at the Southbound Olive Station.
• Northbound Mason Street, north of Mulberry Street
  Closed to through traffic and pedestrians until the end of June, while construction is underway at the Northbound Mulberry Station.
• Southbound Mason Street, south of Mulberry Street
  Closed to through traffic and pedestrians until the end of June, while construction is underway at the Southbound Mulberry Station.
• Northbound Mason Street, north of Laurel Street
  Closed to through traffic and pedestrians until the end of June, while construction is underway at the Northbound Laurel Station.
• Troutman Underpass, west of Mason Street
  Open to pedestrians and cyclists but watch for construction activity.
• Eastbound Harmony Road, west of College Avenue
  Intermittent right lane closures while construction of Mail Creek Bridge continues.

Other Construction Activity - No Traffic Impacts:

• University Avenue and Mason Street
  Construction on University Station is underway and will continue through June.
• Drake, Swallow, Horsetooth, Troutman and Harmony Stations
  Construction underway.
• Prospect Road to Spring Creek Station (located north of Drake Road)
  Construction of a major retaining wall structure adjacent to the railroad tracks is underway.
• Swallow to Horsetooth Road, adjacent to BNSF railroad tracks
  Concrete paving of the dedicated guideway this week, weather dependent.
• Troutman Parkway to Harmony Road, adjacent to BNSF railroad tracks
  Concrete paving of the dedicated guideway this week, weather dependent.

About Downtown Station Construction

Business access will be maintained throughout station construction. East-west streets across Mason Street remain open to through traffic during station construction. Please use posted detour routes onto College Avenue or Howes Street. Pedestrians are directed to use sidewalks opposite the closures on Mason Street. Please note that as finish work on stations occurs throughout the year, reopened areas may experience additional short-term closures.

We're all in this together… Be sure to support your local Fort Collins businesses during construction. They are OPEN and ACCESSIBLE!

Max is on the way! This month, we're highlighting station construction in this April's Max Minute video.

The guideway is the dedicated lane of travel for MAX. It's location is just east of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway tracks. MAX will travel in this lane for much of the route. Stations will be on the northbound and southbound lanes in Downtown and at Swallow and McClelland. Stations will be center loading along the rest of the route, when MAX is traveling on the guideway.
Schedule: August 2012 – Early 2014
Progress: The guideway preparation work is occuring up and down the corridor. Construction of MAX stations began in December 2012. The southbound Olive station, northbound and southbound Mountain stations and the Downtown Transit Center station are all under construction. Please watch for construction and detour signs.

Station construction is similar to building a house. The construction requires several phases and some time may pass between phases. Nine stations will be built Downtown, with nine more along the corridor.
Contractor: Concrete Express, Inc.

Connecting a busy shopping center (Whole Foods Market and more), neighborhoods, employment centers and two trails, the elevated crossing at the Spring Creek Station is under review due to a gap in project funding versus construction costs. The project may undergo some design changes and a revised construction schedule will be released in early 2013. The purpose of the overpass is to provide a safe railroad crossing for pedestrians and bicyclists of all abilities. Due to Public Utilities Commission (PUC) regulations, the regulatory body for rail transportation, the City has to build an overpass. The PUC does not allow any new at-grade crossings to be built.
Schedule: Contractor selection process begins in early 2013. The overpass will open with the start of MAX service, or before.
Progress: redesign
Contractor: N/A

Pedestrians and bicyclist can now cross under the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway’s tracks, with new safe access to shopping, dining, neighborhoods and employment centers.
Schedule: July 2012-February 2013
Progress: Open, however when the Troutman station is under construction, the underpass may close temporarily to keep the community safe. Final landscaping and completion of the area will occur in the spring 2013.
Contractor: Structures, Inc.

An expanded maintenance facility at Transfort’s current operations center (off of Portner Road and Trilby Road) will provide storage and maintenance bays for the six MAX buses arriving in late 2013.
Schedule:November 2012 – September 2013
Progress: Construction is underway.
Contractor: Heath Construction

As the main park and ride facility for MAX, the new South Transit Center will provide ticketing counters, a café, weather protective shelters, 175 parking spaces and dozens of bicycle racks. Located at the current Mason Trail head, the new facility will be built to LEED Gold certified standards.
Schedule: September 2012 – September 2013
Progress: Construction is underway on the 4,000 sq.ft. building and MAX park-n-ride lot. 
Contractor: Growling Bear, Inc.

MAX will be a safe, fast, reliable way to travel north and south through the heart of Fort Collins. It will offer passangers rail-like conveniences with service every 10 minutes. Federally mandated testing will occur once all the construction is complete, prior to service beginning.

Schedule: January 2014 – April 2014
Progress: Not started