As of this morning, cones on South 8th Street push traffic onto the east side of the road, with one lane open in each direction, from Lower Gold Camp Road north to Costilla Street. The City expects the pattern to last about four weeks, and crews will work Saturdays too. Farther south, the new lanes between Motor City Drive and Abbot Lane open today in their final layout.
Since June 2025 this project has mostly been something happening at the Fountain Creek bridge, well north of the hillside. This month it reaches Lower Gold Camp, the end of the corridor closest to Skyway. Two of the improvements planned for this end are a new signal and the last stretch of new sidewalk. The bad news is that the finished road won't exist until spring 2027.
The work started at the bridge and ends at Lower Gold Camp
The 8th Street Corridor Improvements Project covers 8th Street from Fountain Creek to Motor City Drive. That stretch carries more than 30,000 vehicles a day and links the businesses and neighborhoods southwest of I-25 and Highway 24. Voters approved it as a PPRTA project in 2012. When designers got into it, they found the corridor also needed drainage work, safer walking and biking access, a bigger bridge, and a new water main under the road.
Here is the full list of what the City says it will build:
- A widened 8th Street bridge over Fountain Creek, with a new northbound lane and an attached sidewalk and trail toward Highway 24 and the Midland Trail
- Drainage improvements from Bear Creek to Moreno Avenue
- New sidewalks, curb and gutter from Fountain Creek to Lower Gold Camp Road
- An asphalt overlay from Motor City Drive to Highway 24
- Traffic signal improvements at Lower Gold Camp Road and Moreno Avenue
- A replacement 24-inch water main from Vermijo Avenue to Motor City Drive
Two items on that list end at Lower Gold Camp. The new sidewalk runs from the creek to that intersection, and the intersection is one of only two getting signal work. So for anyone driving or walking down from Skyway, the Lower Gold Camp end is where the project adds a new signal and the last of its new sidewalk.
The work so far, in order:
- May and June 2025. KOAA reported that work would start later in May 2025 and predicted it would be done by summer 2026. According to KRDO, the northbound right lane on the bridge closed when work began that June.
- April 2026. That bridge lane reopened, giving the bridge all four lanes again and, according to KRDO, sharply cutting daytime backups.
- October 12, 2026. The Motor City to Abbot section gets its new lanes, and the water-main and road work moves north to the Lower Gold Camp to Costilla stretch.
Why the finish line moved to spring 2027
In the same April report, KRDO said a delayed water-main installation pushed completion of the roughly $12 million project from fall 2026 to the following spring. The cause was a crew boring under Bear Creek to lay the new main. Ryan Phipps, the City's capital improvements manager, told the station, "We had to redesign some elements with the contractor, on the specifics of how that bore was going to work." KRDO also reported that paving, the last phase, won't happen until next spring.
The bore came after other surprises. Earlier drilling to locate utilities found many unmarked underground lines between Motor City Drive and the Fountain Creek bridge. KRDO also reported that the concrete sidewalk on the west side of the 75-year-old bridge was in worse shape than an earlier inspection had shown.
The "$12 million" figure needs a little care. An October 2025 PPRTA memo put a $12.2 million cap on the roadway and utility contract from Motor City Drive to Fountain Creek. Of that, PPRTA pays up to $4.5 million and Colorado Springs Utilities up to $7.7 million. The bridge widening is a separate contract. So Utilities is paying for most of the main contract, which fits with the water main being the piece that set the schedule.
The predictions have moved over time. KOAA's May 2025 report said summer 2026. The Gazette's June 2025 coverage already said the work could run until May 2027. The City's project page now lists timeframes for each phase rather than one completion date. Spring 2027 is the best current estimate, not a promise.
What stays open along the corridor
From the City's October notice:
Access to local businesses remains open and clearly marked throughout the project area.
These 8th Street stops are a short drive from the hillside:
- Corter Coffee Roasters, 406 S. 8th St., Suite B, and Kangaroo Coffee, 720 S. 8th St. Both made the Gazette's September 2026 list of 15 local coffee spots.
- Caffeinated Cow, 1791 S. 8th St., Unit G, is a coffee, ice cream, breakfast and lunch café open seven days a week.
- Little Nepal Indian Restaurant & Bar, 1747 S. 8th St., takes orders and reservations on its own site.
- Cheyenne Mountain Ace Hardware, 1785 S. 8th St., sits at the corner of 8th and Cheyenne Boulevard.
The southern cluster around Cheyenne Boulevard serves a lot of everyday trips, like a hardware run, a breakfast stop, or a carryout dinner. You can reach these stops by Cresta Road, which feeds into Cheyenne Boulevard and then 8th Street. The City's notice doesn't say how far the Lower Gold Camp to Costilla stretch reaches past any of these addresses. Its work map is the easiest way to check before you leave. For daily changes, the City offers email and text alerts.
The Bear Creek side of the calendar
The four weeks of construction overlap the busiest stretch of the fall calendar at Bear Creek. El Paso County sends park visitors in by 21st Street. From Highway 24, head south on 21st to West Rio Grande Avenue for Bear Creek East, or to Argus Road for Bear Creek Terrace. That route goes nowhere near the cones on 8th.
This is also the Bear Creek Nature Center's 50th year. The County held a Bear-thday party in August. Here's what's still ahead:
Boo! at Bear Creek, Friday, October 16. This is a costumed evening walk on the trails at the Nature Center, 245 Bear Creek Road, where you meet and learn about creatures people tend to find creepy. Everyone takes home a craft and a treat. Entry is by timed slots from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. It costs $10 per person or $8 for members, and you have to register and pay ahead. The next morning, Saturday, October 17, the 'Lil Pumpkins Boo Bash starts at 10:30 a.m.
Bear Creek Bear Run, Saturday, November 7. The 12th annual run offers a family-friendly 5K and 3K on the regional park trails. First-time runners get a bear suit, and returning runners can wear the one from a past year. It starts at 2002 Creek Crossing Street, not at the Nature Center, and the snow date is November 14. Here's the morning schedule:
| Time | What happens |
|---|---|
| 8:00 to 9:30 a.m. | Check-in |
| 9:00 a.m. | Costume contest |
| 9:30 a.m. | Bear yoga |
| 10:00 a.m. | Race start |
Registration is $65 for new adults and $50 for new children. Returning adults pay $25 and returning children $20. A little bear entry is $10, and dogs are $5 each. The November 7 race falls in the last days of the expected four-week traffic shift on 8th, so the 21st Street route is still the safer bet that morning.
Bear Creek Regional Park is starting construction of its own. The County plans two new tennis courts, six pickleball courts, a shaded plaza, a renovated archery range and more paved parking. Work is scheduled from fall 2026 through spring 2027, and the work area stays closed until it's done. The County's 2026 capital plan sets aside $250,000 for design and $1.8 million for construction of the courts and archery work. Both of Skyway's nearest corridors will be under construction through the winter, and both are set to finish around the same time next spring.
What comes after the cones
In the Motor City to Abbot section, today's new lanes are not quite finished. Crews will come back later this year to lay a final layer of asphalt and paint permanent lane markings. The new storm drains under that stretch are already in. The City says they'll help reduce flooding during heavy rain. The Lower Gold Camp to Costilla stretch is expected to get its four weeks of one-lane-each-way traffic before the November holidays. The signal improvements and full paving are still ahead. KRDO reported the paving is set for spring 2027.
Questions about how road work, timing or traffic patterns along South 8th might affect a sale or a purchase are part of the job at Broadmoor Homes Co. Ben lives in the area and keeps up with these projects, and he's glad to talk through what this one means for a specific Skyway street. Let's Connect.
