History
US 36 was extended westward in stages into Colorado beginning in 1930. By 1946, it had reached downtown Denver. It was fully paved by 1950.
The Denver-Boulder Turnpike was championed by business and university interests in Boulder due to there being no direct route between Denver and Boulder. It opened in 1952 with the toll being $0.25. Its southeastern end was originally at US 287 Federal Boulevard, but when Denver's new Valley Highway (now I-25) was built, the two roads were connected in 1956 by 2-mile (3.2 km) long SH-382, which has always been commonly regarded as a portion of the Turnpike. When the bonds for the Turnpike were paid off ahead of time in 1967, US 36 was extended from Colfax Avenue in Denver along I-25, SH-382, the newly-free turnpike, SH-7, and SH-66, to end at US 34 in Estes Park. Eventually these portions that overlapped previous state highways became signed only as US 36.
In 1976, US 36 through Denver was straightened to use I-70, I-270, I-76, and I-25. By 1978, US 36 had been further extended west from Estes Park along SH-66 to end inside Rocky Mountain National Park at a second intersection with US 34. In 2003, the overlap with I-76 and I-25 was eliminated when I-270 was extended to I-25 and the Turnpike.
Read more about this topic: U.S. Route 36 In Colorado
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