100x70px E-470
Route information
Maintained by E-470 Public Highway Authority
Length:	46.950 mi[1] (75.559 km)
Existed:	1991 – present
Major junctions
South end:	I-25 / US 87 / SH 470 in Lone Tree
	I-70 / US 36 / US 40 / US 287 in Aurora I-76 / US 6 in Commerce City US 85 in Brighton
North end:	I-25 / US 87 / Northwest Parkway in Thornton
Highway system
Colorado State Highways ← SH 470 US 491 →

E-470 is a 47-mile-long (76 km) controlled-access toll road traversing the eastern portion of the Denver-Aurora Metropolitan Area in the US state of Colorado. The toll road is not a state highway, but is instead maintained by the E-470 Public Highway Authority, which is controlled by a governing board of ten elected officials, three from each county and one from Aurora. Construction and operation involves no state or federal funding or taxes.

Route description[link]

The tollway begins at the I-25 / SH 470 interchange in Lone Tree and runs east and north through Aurora, intersecting with I-70. The highway continues north, passing west of Denver International Airport to connect with I-76 in Brighton and Commerce City before curving west and ending at an interchange with I-25 and the Northwest Parkway in Thornton.

The 470 beltway[link]

E-470 is the eastern portion of what was originally conceived as I-470, an outer beltway for metropolitan Denver. The quasi-government entity that manages the highway, the E-470 Public Highway Authority, consists of eight member jurisdictions: Adams, Arapahoe, and Douglas counties and the cities of Aurora, Brighton, Commerce City, Thornton, and the town of Parker. In addition to all of these jurisdictions, E-470 also passes through the City and County of Denver near Denver International Airport. Affiliate, non-voting members of the Authority, which the highway does not directly serve, are the cities of Arvada and Greeley, and Weld County and the City and County of Broomfield. Ex-officio members are the Colorado Department of Transportation, the Denver Regional Council of Governments and the Regional Transportation District. The authority is headquartered in Aurora.

Tolls[link]

The toll rate on E-470, roughly 33 cents per mile, is one of the highest rates of any toll road in the United States.^{[2][3][citation needed]} There are six toll stations along the 47-mile (76 km) route and the average toll to pass each is $3.00.^[2] Traveling the entire length of the road from I-25 in the north to I-25 in the south can cost in excess of $14.00 one way. The toll stations no longer accept cash; E-470 was one of the first highways in the United States to implement full highway-speed electronic tolling.^[4] Cameras at each station photograph the front and rear license plate of each vehicle. A bill is mailed after approximately 30 days to the registered owner of the vehicle in accordance with C.R.S 43-4-506.5 (6)(a).^[5] Failure to pay the bill on time results in a $5 late fee after 30 days, followed by a $15 collection fee after 60 days, and a $25 penalty after a total of five months, and then an additional $20 court charge after six months totaling a maximum penalty of $65 for each unpaid set of tolls.^[6]

Drivers with EXpressToll accounts, E-470's automated toll collection service, and transponders mounted on their vehicle save 20% on posted toll rates along E-470.^[7]

History[link]

Plans for this eastern extension of State Highway 470 gained momentum in the 1980s, as Denver moved forward with plans for a new international airport in its corridor. Recognizing the highway's development potential, a number of local governments joined together to create the E-470 Public Highway Authority, a quasi-governmental entity that would construct the highway. The highway would be financed through tolls, a relative rarity in the western U.S.

The first section, between I-25 in the south and Parker Road in Douglas County, opened to traffic June 1, 1991. Tolling began on July 15, making E-470 the first highway in the United States to implement electronic tolling. The highway was opened segment by segment until the final stretch connecting to I-25 in the north in Adams County opened on January 3, 2003.^[8]

E-470 at I-76

In its early years, traffic was light as the completed portion was short and traversed a largely undeveloped area. With the opening of Denver International Airport in 1995, E-470 came in as a direct route to the airport from the rapidly growing southern tier of the metropolitan area. Upon its completion, the highway provided the same access for northern Colorado, itself a high-growth area. However, perhaps the most significant growth in the region will occur in the E-470 corridor itself, which spawned numerous annexations by member cities; Commerce City, Colorado has doubled in land area in anticipation of this new development. In the coming decades, 250,000 new residents are expected along the E-470 corridor in Aurora alone, which would nearly double that city's population.

The I-70/E-470 Fly-By Interchange Complex in Aurora was recognized by the Design Build Institute of America (DBIA) with a National Design Build Award in 2008.

Exit list[link]

County	Location	Mile[1]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Douglas	Lone Tree	0.000	0.000	1A	I-25 – Denver, Colorado Springs SH 470	South end of E-470; roadway continues as west SH 470
				1B	Jamaica Street to County Line Road	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		1.711	2.754	2	Peoria Street – Centennial Airport
		2.700	4.345	Toll Plaza A
	Stonegate	3.502	5.636	3	Chambers Road
	Stonegate– Parker	4.380	7.049	4	Jordan Road – Parker
	Parker	5.180	8.336	5	SH 83 (Parker Road) – Parker, Centennial, Aurora
Arapahoe	Aurora	8.887	14.302	9	Gartrell Road
		10.683	17.193	10	Smoky Hill Road
		13.352	21.488	13	Quincy Avenue – Aurora
		16.150	25.991	Toll Plaza B
		16.451	26.475	16	Jewell Avenue to Iliff Avenue
		19.000	30.578	19	6th Parkway
Arapahoe– Adams		20.375	32.790	20	I-70 / Colfax Avenue, 19th Avenue, Gun Club Road – Limon, Aurora, Denver	Northbound exits signed as 20A (east) and 20B (west), southbound exit 20, no toll either direction
Adams		22.610	36.387	Toll Plaza C
		24.477	39.392	24	56th Avenue – Front Range Airport
		25.523	41.075	25	64th Avenue
Denver		27.849	44.819	28	Peña Boulevard – Denver International Airport	Signed as exits 28A (east) and 28B (west)
Adams	Commerce City			Toll Plaza D
		30.562	49.185	31	96th Avenue
		32.678	52.590	32	104th Avenue
		34.130	54.927	34	To I-76 west / 120th Avenue
	Commerce City – Brighton	35.491	57.117	35	I-76 east – Fort Morgan	Northbound entrance and southbound exit
	Brighton	38.465	61.903	38	US 85 to I-76 west – Brighton, Greeley, Commerce City, Denver
	Todd Creek	40.220	64.728	Toll Plaza E
	Thornton	43.817	70.517	43	Colorado Boulevard – Thornton
		44.843	72.168	45	York Street
		46.398– 46.950	74.670– 75.559	47	I-25 – Fort Collins, Denver Northwest Parkway	North end of E-470; roadway continues west as Northwest Parkway
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi      Concurrency terminus •      Closed/former •      Incomplete access •      Unopened

See also[link]

Colorado portal U.S. Roads portal

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website
• Federal Highway Administration Case Study
• Denver's 470 Saga