SH 88 is one of the original state highways commissioned when the state highway system was formed in 1923. It originally was a continuous route that went from Belleview to Broadway and then east to Parker Road. It was extended along Quincy Avenue to serve the Lowry Field Bombing Range and was turned back after the bombing range was decommissioned. It was then rerouted on the newly built Arapahoe Road that goes from I-25 to Parker Road, making the present day route from Colfax Avenue in Denver to Parker Road in Aurora.
Route description
SH 88 westbound in Greenwood Village
SH 88 is a 19.171-mile (30.853 km) long highway, starting at a cloverleaf intersection at Colfax Avenue (U.S. Route 40) and Federal Boulevard in Denver. It starts as a six lane highway going south with a 35 mph speed limit. It then interchanges with the 6th Avenue Freeway (US 6) before passing through the west Denver neighborhoods. Continuing south, it interchanges at US 285's final exit as a freeway entering Sheridan. It then turns east on Belleview with three lanes in each direction and a 40 mph speed limit. It passes under US 85 and goes through another neighborhood with two lanes in each direction approaching Greenwood Village. The route enters the Denver Tech Center and becomes concurrent with Interstate 25 from exit 199 to exit 197 at Arapahoe Road. SH-88 continues east with a 40 mph speed limit on Arapahoe Road with three lanes in each direction passing through Centennial and north of Centennial Airport with a 55 mph speed limit until it reaches its eastern terminus at Parker Road (State Highway 83) in Foxfield.
History
SH 88 is an original 1920's highway that originally ran along Belleview from Broadway to Parker Road in Greenwood Village. In 1939, it was extended east along Quincy Avenue into the now defunct Lowry Field Bombing Range until 1954, when the bombing range was decommissioned.[1] The western extension to Santa Fe (US 85) was completed by 1956. In 1959, the section along Arapahoe road was added, originally as a gravel road and it wasn't paved until 1961. The section of Federal Blvd in Sheridan was originally signed as SH 75 and was renumbered to SH 88 in 1968. Arapahoe Road didn't become an expressway until it was built east to Peoria Street in 1977 and the final stretch to SH 83 (Parker Rd.) wasn't finished until 1990. The intersection of Arapahoe Road and Parker Road used to have a triple left going from eastbound to northbound and was one of the most congested intersections in the Denver Metro Area. It was later upgraded to an interchange where Parker Road now continues north without stopping. The interchange was completed in 2012.[1]
^Although the total length is 19.171 miles, CDOT doesn't include the concurrent section with I-25 as part of SH 88, thus leaving out approximately two miles
