MARY HUDDY –

CV Student Media –   

In 2010, Castle Rock’s population was 48,231 people, and in five short years that population spiked up to 55,747 people. With the growing population, the number of houses and the town had to expand as well as accommodate new residents.

When people look back on the year 2013, they’ll likely remember the many construction projects underway. October of 2013 was when the North Meadows Extension began, and so did the traffic. The extension would allow another exit to the Meadows and connect Highway 85 and Interstate 25, which will supposedly be finished by the summer of 2016.

Traffic has increased not only as a result of this major improvement, but also due to the little construction projects like repaving roads. In order to get onto I-25, there’s usually some type of detour. The main goal is to eventually have traffic flowing smoothly, but until all the construction is finished, delays are expected and the commute may be more congested.

“Having 50 minutes seems like enough time to get lunch, but when there’s as much traffic as there is, you end up spending half of that time driving,” said Brooke Moore ‘17.

According to local students, traffic peaks during the times of 7 to 9am, 11am-1pm, and 3 to 6 pm. Delays are especially bad during those hours, adding at least another 10 minutes to the commute.

Not all of the construction in Castle Rock causes traffic, however. Currently, the Town of Castle Rock is also working on building a shopping center and adding many different types of restaurants, which will provide more entertainment opportunities.

“I feel like all there is to do in Castle Rock is go out to eat, and there aren’t any places that I haven’t been to millions of times,”said Jillian Ashby ‘16.

Construction workers will be laboring away from 7am to 5pm during weekdays, so all of the traffic and construction is projected to be finished by the end of 2016.