Pikes Peak Highway

The Pikes Peak Highway is a 19-mile (31 km) toll road that runs from Cascade, Colorado to the summit of Pikes Peak in El Paso County, at an altitude of 14,115 feet (4,302 m). It is at least partially open year-round, "weather permitting", i.e. open up to the altitude where snow removal becomes excessively difficult.

The Pikes Peak Highway was constructed in 1915 and financed by Spencer Penrose at a cost of $500,000.

An earlier road up the mountain, the Pike's Peak Carriage Road, dates back to 1888. Thousands of tourists traveled along the Pikes Peak Carriage Road up to Pikes Peak's summit. It was opened by the Cascade Town Company in 1888 and closed in 1902.

Today, the road is maintained by the city of Colorado Springs.

The highway has been home to an annual automobile and motorcycle race called the Pikes Peak International Hillclimb since 1916.

Another race is the Pikes Peak Cycling Hill Climb, first held in 2010. The 2016 edition will also be the first edition of the USA Cycling Hill Climb National Championship.

Litigation was pursued by the Sierra Club in 1998-1999, on grounds of environmental damage from the gravel portion of the road. The environmental damage was caused primarily by the 150,000,000 pounds (70,000 t) of gravel that washes away annually. The same amount needed to be hauled up the mountain each year in order to maintain the road surface. Environmental damage includes alpine ponds and wetlands becoming filled with gravel, and layers of gravel averaging 2 feet (0.6 m) to 4 feet (1.2 m) feet deep covering the forest floor below. Pursuant to the settlement agreed by the Sierra Club and the City of Colorado Springs, the unpaved portion of the Pikes Peak Highway became a hard-surface road, despite concerns that such a project would radically change the nature of the annual automobile and motorcycle race. The paving project was completed on October 1, 2011.

Pikes Peak Hillclimb champion Rod Millen warned that paving the road would put an end to the race. However, the race went ahead normally in 2012 and has continued ever since.

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Wikipedia