Boulder’s $157 million transportation plan faces funding questions
A draft capital plan has no project currently identified for cuts, but uncertain sales-tax replacement and rising construction costs could put locally funded work under pressure.
Boulder’s draft 2027-2032 Transportation Capital Improvement Program would direct about $157 million to streets, bridges, sidewalks, paths and safety projects. But declining sales-tax revenue, rising construction costs and the scheduled 2029 expiration of a transportation tax could complicate the plan’s long-term funding.
The Transportation Advisory Board received the draft Aug. 10 but took no final action. A public hearing and final TAB presentation are planned for September, followed by Planning Board review and City Council budget actions in September and October, staff told the board.
The draft includes about $25 million in grants and would increase transportation program funding to roughly $92 million, largely because the city’s transportation maintenance fee is expected to begin generating revenue in 2027. Sustainable transportation programming would rise from about $9 million annually to approximately $12 million, according to the presentation.
Major projects listed in the draft include:
- South Boulder Road and Manhattan Circle safety improvements, with design and construction in 2027-28;
- North 30th Street improvements between Walnut Street and Diagonal Highway, with construction planned for 2027-28;
- East Arapahoe Avenue safety improvements between 28th and 38th streets, with right-of-way work and construction planned for 2027-29;
- the 26th Street bridge over Fourmile Canyon Creek, with construction anticipated to begin in 2031;
- the Folsom Bridge deck replacement, anticipated in 2028; and
- South 30th Street improvements between Colorado Avenue and Aurora Avenue, planned for 2027-28.
Staff said Safe Streets for All grants supporting the North 30th Street and East Arapahoe projects were moving forward and were not in jeopardy. The South Boulder Road and South 30th Street projects also include grant funding in the figures presented to the board.
The meeting record did not identify a project for cancellation or deferral before the September hearing. Projects without an identified grant share — including the 26th Street bridge and Folsom Bridge deck replacement — appear more directly exposed to transportation-fund pressures than the federally backed safety projects. That is a funding-risk distinction, not a staff designation that either project will be removed.
Staff said the transportation fund depends heavily on sales-tax revenue. A 0.15% transportation-dedicated sales tax is scheduled to sunset in 2029 and shift to the General Fund. Staff described replacement funding as a verbal commitment rather than a guaranteed allocation, creating uncertainty for projects planned after the draft period.
Boulder’s most recent available capital plan also said rising costs have forced projects to be rescaled and, in some cases, extended the time needed to complete repairs and construction, the city’s 2026-2031 CIP says. Staff told TAB that construction can be unusually expensive in Boulder because of limited staging space, dense development and heavy pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
A city financial forecast presented to the council in 2025 showed sales-and-use-tax projections below the original forecast for 2025 and 2026, while projecting a moderate recovery from 2027 through 2031. The forecast cited economic uncertainty, supply-chain risks, inflation and potential effects on consumer spending as revenue risks, according to the council’s study-session materials.
The draft’s funding mix shifts toward ongoing multimodal programs — about 60% of the program, compared with 40% for projects — as the transportation maintenance fee supports capital maintenance. The September hearing will be the first public opportunity to weigh that mix and the projects’ funding assumptions before the plan moves through the budget process.