Skip to main content

Atkins to aid transformation of Colorado’s transportation system

UK-based design, engineering and project management consultancy Atkins is to assist the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) in transforming the state’s aging transportation system into one of the safest and most reliable in the US. CDOT has selected the company to provide program support for the RoadX Program, its commitment to rapid and aggressive implementation of innovative technology to revolutionise the state’s transportation system within the next ten years. CDOT is investing US$20 m
June 27, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
UK-based design, engineering and project management consultancy 1677 Atkins is to assist the 5701 Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) in transforming the state’s aging transportation system into one of the safest and most reliable in the US.

CDOT has selected the company to provide program support for the RoadX Program, its commitment to rapid and aggressive implementation of innovative technology to revolutionise the state’s transportation system within the next ten years.  
 
CDOT is investing US$20 million in the next year to combat congestion and improve safety through the use of technology. During the three-year contract period, Atkins and two other consulting firms will be advisors for all RoadX program activities, serving as an extension of staff and helping to move projects from conception through procurement to construction.

Colorado currently ranks 32nd out of 50 states in the quality of its roads, while the metro areas in Denver and Colorado Springs are some of the most congested cities in the country. Metro Denver ranks as 19th worst in congestion and 16th worst in trip reliability; congestion in Denver/Aurora costs US$1,101 per commuter per year.

The state’s population grew by 50 per cent in the last 20 years and is predicted to grow by another 50 per cent in the next 20 years. In 2014, 488 people died in traffic related crashes using Colorado’s transportation system and another 3,219 were seriously injured; in that year, the cost of all crashes in Colorado was US$13.27 billion, or approximately US$2,500 per person.

The RoadX program aims to tackle these issues, employing a multipronged DO-IT (deployment, operations, innovation, technology) approach with the objective of being the most efficient, agile and flexible system for delivering transportation technology. From 2016 to 2018, the program is slated to deploy technology that will reduce the cost of transporting goods by 25 per cent, turn a rural state highway into a zero death road and improve congestion on Colorado’s critical corridors.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Speeding the recovery of stranded commercial vehicles is paying dividends in Georgia
    April 9, 2014
    Delcan’s Cheryl-Marie Hansberger details how Georgia’s Towing and Recovery Incentive Program (TRIP) has improved road safety and helped to reduce traffic congestion in the metro Atlanta region. By 2008, steady increases in population had led the Texas Transportation Institute to declare Atlanta, Georgia to be the third most congested city in the US. In an effort to increase road user safety and mitigate the effects of traffic, the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) and its local partners have imple
  • The bus future is electric, says UITP
    January 11, 2017
    More and more cities in Europe and around the world are turning to electric buses (or e-buses) in an effort to go green according to UITP’s new ZeEUS eBus Report. The report, published as part of the Zero Emission Urban Bus System project, reveals that 19 public transport operators and authorities, covering around 25 European cities, have a published e-bus strategy for 2020. By this date, there should be more than 2,500 electric buses operating in these cities, representing six per cent of their total fl
  • London to have three more fully-electric bus routes
    July 7, 2017
    Transport for London (TfL) and the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, have announced three more electric-only bus routes in the city on routes 46, 153 and 214, the latest in a series of measures to tackle London’s toxic air.
  • Groups seek electronic collision alert devices on big trucks
    February 20, 2015
    The US Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Truck Safety Coalition, the Center for Auto Safety and Road Safe America have filed a petition with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) requesting that the agency initiate rulemaking to require forward collision avoidance and mitigation braking (F-CAM) systems on all new large trucks and buses with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 10,000 pounds or more. F-CAM technology uses radar and sensors to first alert the driver and then t