Colorado State Highway 83

State Highway 83
State Highway 83
	Map of central Colorado with SH 83 highlighted in red
Route information
	Maintained by CDOT
Length	77.26 mi (124.34 km)
Major junctions
South end	SH 21 in Black Forest
	E-470 in Parker; I-225 in Aurora;
North end	SH 2 in Denver
Location
Country	United States
State	Colorado
Counties	El Paso, Douglas, Arapahoe, Denver
Highway system
	Colorado State Highway System; Interstate; US; State; Scenic;

State Highway 83 is a state highway that runs from SH 115 interchange in southern Colorado Springs to SH 2 at Leetsdale Dr. / Colorado Blvd. in Denver. The first 21 miles, from SH 115 to SH 21, is now maintained by the city of Colorado Springs; signage is inconsistent within the city limits.

Route description

The highway begins in southern Colorado Springs at the intersection of SH 115 and the terminus of SH 83 which is called South Academy Blvd. It runs east then north through the center of the city, where it is called North Academy Blvd. Several city intersections have been upgraded with overpasses (at Proby Parkway, US 24 and Woodmen Rd) to avoid making this just another city street. The highway continues north then northwest through the city, and then just before connecting to I-25 it turns directly north and speed up to 55 mph. After paralleling I-25 for several miles, it turns east as it overlays Interquest Parkway. The highway is solely named SH 83 beginning in far northeastern Colorado Springs, at the intersection of CO 21 and InterQuest Parkway. From there it becomes a 60 mph rural highway, continuing northward through rural countryside for 30 miles to Franktown, through a tree heavy and hilly portion of Douglas County, and passing the east border of Castlewood Canyon State Park, then intersecting SH 86. The route becomes a six lane divided expressway at Bayou Gulch Road with a 55 mph speed limit. The route continues on and enters the City of Parker and the southeastern portion of the Denver Metropolitan Area, where it interchanges with E-470. After, it enters Arapahoe County just north of E-470 and descends into Centennial where it interchanges with Arapahoe Road, which recently was upgraded to a grade-separated interchange. SH 83 continues as a 55 mph an expressway as it enters Aurora, intersecting Hampden Avenue and Interstate 225. The route enters suburban Aurora, and it becomes more of a city street, dropping to a 45 mph speed limit and narrowing to 4 lanes. It soon enters the Cherry Creek district of Denver and ends at Colorado Boulevard/SH 2.

Major intersections

Note that miles 0-21 have been turned over to the city of Colorado Springs for maintenance. As of 2013, most signage still includes SH 83 designations. All exits are unnumbered.

County	Location	mi^[2]	km	Destinations	Notes
El Paso	Colorado Springs	21	34	SH 21 south (Powers Boulevard)	Southern terminus of state maintenance; road continues south as Interquest Parkway; northern terminus of SH 21
El Paso	Black Forest	28.5	45.9	SH 105 west – Monument	Eastern terminus of SH 105
Douglas	Franktown	51	82	SH 86 – Castle Rock, Elizabeth
Douglas	Parker	62	100	E-470 to I-25 / I-70 – Limon, Denver International Airport, Colorado Springs	South end of freeway; E-470 exit 5
Arapahoe	Aurora–Centennial– Foxfield tripoint	65.5	105.4	SH 88 (Arapahoe Road)
	Aurora	70	110	Hampden Avenue east
		70.5	113.5	Vaughn Way / Dam Road
		71	114	I-225 – Greenwood Village, Aurora	North end of freeway; I-225 exit 4
Arapahoe–Denver county line	Aurora–Denver line	72.5	116.7	SH 30 (Havana Street)
City and County of Denver		77.5	124.7	SH 2 (Colorado Boulevard)	Northern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi Electronic toll collection