Mesa County recently celebrated the completion of improvements to 18 Road, a key access route to some of the county’s most popular public lands and recreation areas, the county said in a news release.

The project, which officially wrapped up this month after construction began in December 2024, improves access to the Desert Trails Special Recreation Area and the Bureau of Land Management 18 Road Campground.

Among those who frequently use 18 Road are mountain bikers, equestrians, hikers, campers, off-road-vehicle users and families heading out for a day on public lands.

Before the project, the road was gravel and often difficult to navigate during wet or winter conditions, affecting safety and access, especially during peak recreation seasons.

The project reconstructed approximately six miles of roadway, beginning north of the Government Highline Canal and extending to the BLM 18 Road Campground.

Key improvements include:

• A widened roadway measuring 32 feet.
• Four-foot paved shoulders in both directions to improve safety for cyclists and equestrian users.
• Improved drainage, including two new box culverts and additional replacements.
• Better grading, stabilization, signage and striping.
• Improved sight distance and safer access points to recreation areas.

Mesa County secured a Federal Lands Access Program grant in 2017 to help fund the project. FLAP grants are competitive and designed to improve transportation facilities that provide access to federal lands.

With more than 3,000 miles of countywide roadway to maintain, projects of this scale are only possible through special funding partnerships, the news release said.