CDOT Begins Highway of Legends Reconstruction Near Weston This Spring

Drivers navigating the narrow two-lane stretch of Colorado Highway 12 just west of Weston should expect flaggers, one-lane traffic control, and delays of up to 15 minutes beginning as early as mid-April. The Colorado Department of Transportation announced the project Tuesday, with work set to run through September 2026 between Mile Point 46.7 and Mile Point 48 on the Highway of Legends.

The construction window covers the final weeks of the school year and the entirety of peak summer tourism season, meaning school buses, freight trucks, emergency vehicles, and visitors headed toward the Spanish Peaks and Cuchara Valley will all share a compressed corridor. During Monday-through-Friday construction hours of 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., traffic through the zone drops to one alternating lane controlled by flaggers or temporary signals. Outside those hours, a portable traffic signal manages through-traffic. Vehicles wider than 12 feet will face lane restrictions throughout the project.

Prime contractor United Companies will perform full-depth reclamation of the existing asphalt, pulverizing the old surface and reusing it as base material before laying new hot-mix asphalt. The rebuilt roadway will carry a 16-foot overall widening, including a new 12-foot eastbound passing lane and shoulders widened by roughly 4 feet. Culvert repairs, updated signing, and new pavement markings round out the scope.

CDOT Region 2 Transportation Director Shane Ferguson framed the project as both a safety investment and a preservation of the corridor. "The Highway of Legends is a scenic and historic route known for its views, history and outdoor experiences between Trinidad and La Veta," Ferguson said. "Construction of passing lanes will provide ample space and opportunities for vehicles to safely pass slower moving traffic."

That passing lane targets one of the most persistent hazards on two-lane rural highways: risky passing maneuvers that lead to head-on and sideswipe collisions. On a route with limited shoulder width and constrained sightlines through mountain curves, that geometry has historically forced drivers into dangerous judgment calls. The rebuilt shoulders will also give vehicles more room to recover from road-edge departures, a critical factor for farm equipment and emergency responders sharing the route.

For freight haulers and agricultural operators who depend on CO-12 between Trinidad and points west, the mid-April through September schedule lands squarely on the heaviest-use months of the year. Community members with concerns about equipment access or staging impacts can reach CDOT through the project information line and email published on the department's project page. Real-time road conditions are available at COtrip.org.