Improvements to 18 Road will offer safer access to recreation area

18 Road will see improvements to provide safe access to the recreational area for bike, foot, and equestrian traffic. At the April 30 public hearing, the Chair of the Board of County Commissioners signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Mesa County, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, and the Federal Highway Administration — Central Federal Lands Highway Division to start the process of the 18 Road Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP) project.

The project aims to pave and widen 18 Road from Highline Canal to the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Campground to a 32-foot width, including four-foot paved shoulders on each side for bike, pedestrian, and equestrian use. 

Mesa County was awarded a grant for the 18 Road Federal Lands Access Program project in 2017, and this MOU identifies and assigns responsibilities for the environmental analysis, design, right-of-way, utilities, acquisition, construction, and potential future maintenance for the project.

Mesa County will match approximately 17% of the project’s total cost, estimated at $16.7 million.