By the late 1990s, significant growth and new development in Colorado Springs and eastern El Paso County had transformed Woodmen Road from a gravel highway to a major east-west arterial. In particular, the Woodmen Road-Academy Boulevard intersection—the heart of a vibrant commercial center and residential neighborhood—was expected to serve more than 100,000 vehicles a day. The need to handle this level of growth with a safe, convenient transportation network led to the Woodmen Road corridor improvements.