Denver plans to redesign West 38th Avenue from Sheridan Boulevard to Fox Street, including Berkeley’s southern edge, with fewer travel lanes, wider sidewalks and bus bypass lanes at busy intersections. Voters approved $55.3 million for it in 2025, but no construction date has been set.
West 38th Avenue is the line between Berkeley and West Highland from Sheridan Boulevard to Federal Boulevard, and it keeps going east between Sunnyside and Highland to Fox Street. It is a commercial street, a bus route and the way a lot of northwest Denver gets to I-25 and downtown. It is also a street the city has been studying for a major change.
In 2025, Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure finished a corridor plan that recommends taking the street down to one through lane in each direction, widening sidewalks and giving buses a way around traffic at major intersections. That November, voters approved the Vibrant Denver bond, which includes $55.3 million for the West 38th Avenue project.
Jason Sirois, a Denver Realtor with FORM at Compass, works from our office at 1900 W 32nd Ave, a few blocks south of the corridor. Here is what the plan proposes, where the money and timeline stand as of October 2026, and what owners and buyers along 38th Avenue should keep in mind.
What is Denver planning for West 38th Avenue?
The city’s West 38th Avenue Corridor Study ran from December 2023 to spring 2025 and covers about three miles from Sheridan, the city limit with Wheat Ridge, to Fox Street. The final plan, dated April 2025, chose an option it calls “Lane Reduction with Bus Priority” over full bus rapid transit.
The long-term vision includes:
- Fewer travel lanes. The plan recommends going from four through lanes to two, one in each direction. Denver7 described the change as five lanes to three, counting the center turn lane.
- Wider sidewalks. The plan prefers 12-foot sidewalks, with 8 feet as the minimum, on most blocks.
- Bus priority. At major signalized intersections, including Federal, Lowell, Irving, Zuni and Pecos, short bus lanes would act as queue jumps so buses can get ahead of traffic.
- Medians and curb extensions at some intersections, plus landscaping.
- Mostly the same parking. The city’s FAQ says the plan largely keeps on-street parking, with targeted removals.
There is no bike lane in the plan. The city says the right-of-way is too narrow and points riders to West 35th and West 41st Avenues as parallel routes.
| Feature | West 38th today | 2025 corridor plan |
|---|---|---|
| Through travel lanes | Four, plus a center turn lane | Two, one each direction |
| Sidewalk width | Varies by block | 12 feet preferred, 8 feet minimum |
| Buses | Share general traffic lanes | Queue-jump lanes at major intersections |
| Bike facility | None | None; parallel routes on 35th and 41st |
| On-street parking | Present on many blocks | Largely kept, targeted removals |
| Posted speed | 35 mph | Not set in the plan summary |
Sources: City and County of Denver West 38th Avenue Corridor Study page and FAQ; West 38th Avenue Corridor Plan, April 2025; Existing Conditions Report, April 2024; Denver7, April 2, 2025.
Why is the city redesigning the street?
The plan’s case rests mostly on crash history. The final plan counted 668 crashes on the corridor from September 2018 to August 2023, including 6 fatal and 18 serious-injury crashes, and found that broadside crashes and crashes involving people walking or biking made up 71% of the fatal and severe-injury total. West 38th Avenue is on Denver’s High Injury Network, and the city’s FAQ says the highest crash rates are at Sheridan, Federal and Fox.
The other goals are transit and walking. The city wants buses on 38th to run every 15 minutes or better and to stop losing time at red lights, and wider sidewalks are meant to support the businesses along the street.
Is the redesign funded, and when will it be built?
The money is there; the date is not. The city’s Vibrant Denver bond project list includes the “West 38th Avenue Multimodal Project” in Council District 1 at $55,300,000, from Sheridan to Fox. The transportation question, 2A, passed in November 2025 with about 62.6% of the vote, according to results reported by Complete Colorado.
Two details are worth knowing:
- The bond language is general. It describes wider sidewalks where feasible, crossing improvements, landscaping and green infrastructure, and signal and bus stop upgrades, with specifics “informed by further traffic analysis and community engagement.” It does not itself commit to a lane reduction.
- The schedule is long. Denverite reported the city promised to complete bond projects within six years, and the city’s finance department has said the full bond program is to be complete in 2031. Denver7 reported in April 2025 that design could take up to two years.
As of early October 2026, we did not find a published construction start date, design milestone or upcoming public meeting for the project. The city’s project page also describes near-term “quick-build” changes at seven intersections, Tennyson, Lowell, Irving, Alcott, Zuni, Tejon and Pecos, such as protected left turns, refuge islands and curb extensions, but it does not say which year that work was scheduled.
What would it mean for Berkeley and nearby neighborhoods?
The corridor touches four of the neighborhoods FORM writes about. Berkeley sits north of 38th between Sheridan and Federal, West Highland sits south of it, and east of Federal the street divides Sunnyside from Highland.
The concerns raised so far are the ones you would expect. When the Berkeley Regis United Neighbors zoning committee asked the city about the plan in late 2024, residents raised traffic shifting onto side streets, parking spilling into residential blocks and capacity being cut roughly in half. The city answered that volumes on 38th are below capacity outside the evening peak near Federal. Denver North Star reported that city modeling showed no congestion effect for 23 of 24 hours a day, and that businesses named parking as a top concern.
For owners near the street, construction is the more immediate question once it is scheduled: lane closures, access to driveways and businesses, and how long work lasts on a given block. Those details will come with final design.
It also connects to other changes nearby. Federal Boulevard is planned for bus rapid transit, and Denver’s Unlocking Housing Choices zoning proposal ties extra housing to lots near transit priority streets. West of Sheridan, Wheat Ridge already narrowed its stretch of 38th Avenue in 2012 and is now planning a refresh of its own.
What should owners and buyers along 38th Avenue do now?
- Follow the city’s project page for design updates and public meetings, and comment when the city asks for input.
- Know which side of the street you are on. Parking, turning movements and medians will differ block by block, and final design will show the details.
- Ask about timing in a purchase. If you are buying on or near 38th, a construction window is worth factoring into plans, even though no date has been set.
- Keep an eye on bond tranches. The city issues bond money in stages, and the timing of the 38th Avenue project depends on when it is funded and designed.
For more on the area, see our Berkeley community page. If you are weighing a sale or purchase near West 38th Avenue and want to talk through what the plan could mean for a specific property, Jason Sirois and the FORM Team at Compass Denver are glad to help.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is West 38th Avenue in Denver going down to one lane each way?
That is what the city’s April 2025 corridor plan recommends: two through lanes instead of four, with bus queue-jump lanes at major intersections. The final design has not been released, and the bond language does not lock in a lane count.
How much money is set aside for the West 38th Avenue project?
$55.3 million, through the Vibrant Denver bond that voters approved in November 2025. The project runs from Sheridan Boulevard to Fox Street.
When will construction on West 38th Avenue start?
No start date has been published as of October 2026. Design was expected to take up to two years, and the city plans to complete bond projects by 2031.
Will West 38th Avenue get bike lanes?
No. The city says the street is too narrow for a bike facility and points to West 35th and West 41st Avenues as parallel bike routes.
Will street parking go away on West 38th Avenue?
Mostly not. The city’s FAQ says the plan largely keeps on-street parking, with targeted removals in some spots. Specific blocks will be clear in final design.
Is this the same as the Federal Boulevard bus rapid transit project?
No. Federal Boulevard BRT is a separate CDOT and RTD project. The 38th Avenue plan adds bus priority at intersections, including at Federal, but not full bus rapid transit.
This post is general information based on City and County of Denver materials and news reports available as of October 8, 2026. Plans, funding and schedules can change before construction. It is not legal or financial advice. Check the city’s project page for the latest.
