Fix North I-25 Business Alliance

The key element of NCLA’s transportation strategy is the effort to widen North I-25 to 3 lanes each way between Highway 14 in Fort Collins to Highway 66 north of Longmont. NCLA has an aggressive, integrated strategy to secure the $1.2B needed. With current funding sources, the Colorado Department of Transportation cannot expand I-25 until 2035 at the earliest, virtually ensuring that a 60-mile trip from Fort Collins to Denver or Denver International Airport will routinely take 3 hours, an unacceptable situation. The NCLA group working on this is the Fix North I-25 Business Alliance.

2015-16 Goals of the Fix North I-25 Business Alliance include:

• Successful 2016 Legislative Session – the ‘Year of Transportation’
  • Success looks like this: legislation passed to commit general fund monies to transportation; lion’s share of HPF dedicated to transportation; TRANS bonds measure (“Fix Colorado Roads”) referred to November 2016 ballot by Legislature
• “Fix Colorado Roads” referred ballot measure passes
• Continue ally-building process
  • 225 local businesses signed on as allies
  • Partners in the Fix Colorado Roads Alliance reach agreement on a set of guiding principles and a strategy for the business community to advocate for adequate funding for Colorado’s highways
• Strong media and communications plan
  • Overall communications plan developed – free media, co-op ad campaigns with local media, use of free in-kind trades w/ local media, social media, etc.
  • Strong PR campaign
  • 1,000 people sign online petition prior to February rollout of goals
• Research other states’ highway funding methods
• Fix North I-25’s work fully funded at $150,000
• Plan for long-term sustainability of the Fix North I-25 Business Alliance