How to avoid Colorado’s worst holiday road and air travel congestion

• Colorado is expecting unseasonably warm weather with little to no snow through the Christmas holiday.
• Travelers on I-70 and I-25 should plan for heavy traffic on specific days and times surrounding the holidays.
• Denver International Airport anticipates its busiest days will be Dec. 23, 27 and 28.

The final Christmas rush is on and that includes on the roads and in the skies.

Here’s a look at holiday travel weather, how to avoid the worst of holiday traffic on Colorado’s Interstate 70 and Interstate 25, road construction and when to expect the busiest days at Denver International Airport.

Before driving to your holiday destination, visit COtrip.org or the COtrip Planner App.

Weather outlook for Colorado Christmas travel looking good

Much of Colorado will see unseasonably warm weather with slight chances of small snowfall totals for the mountains and no snow forecast for the Front Range, I-25 corridor and Eastern Plains through Dec. 26, according to the National Weather Service.

When road construction projects will pause for holiday travel in Colorado

The Colorado Department of Transportation announced it will suspend construction statewide by noon Dec. 24 through Dec. 25 (Christmas Day) and again by noon Dec. 31 through Jan. 1.

Also, there won’t be lane closures on the I-70 Floyd Hill Project west of Denver through Jan. 4.

How to avoid the worst of I-70 mountain corridor holiday traffic in Colorado

Heavy traffic is expected on I-70 between Denver and Vail through the holidays.

Here are times when the I-70 Mountain Express Lanes will be open:

• Westbound: 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. (through Jan. 4)
• Eastbound: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (through Jan. 5)

Here are daily traffic counts at the Eisenhower/Johnson Tunnels along I-70 from 2024 to help you avoid the busiest times:

• Dec. 23 (Monday): 42,075 total, split equally between westbound and eastbound.
• Dec. 24 (Tuesday): 32,495 total, split equally.
• Dec. 25 (Wednesday): 28,177 total, nearly split equally with westbound slightly more than eastbound.
• Dec. 26 (Thursday): 46,011 total, with 56% westbound traffic.
• Dec. 27 (Friday): 45,564 total, with 56% westbound traffic.
• Dec. 28 (Saturday): 43,760 total, nearly split equally.
• Dec. 29 (Sunday): 45,762 total, split equally.
• Dec. 30 (Monday): 33,577 total, split equally.
• Dec. 31 (Tuesday): 38,936 total, with 54% westbound.

Best and worst times to travel on I-25, major highways over the holidays

According to INRIX, a provider of transportation data and insights:

• Dec. 23: Worst times are 1-6 p.m. and best times are before 11 a.m.
• Dec. 24: Minimal traffic.
• Dec. 25: Minimal traffic.
• Dec. 26: Worst times are noon to 5 p.m. and best times are before 11 a.m.
• Dec. 27: Worst times are 3-7 p.m. and best times are before 2 p.m.
• Dec. 28: Worst times are 1:30-7 p.m. and best times are before 11 a.m.
• Dec. 29: Worst times are noon to 6 p.m. and best times are before 11 a.m.
• Dec. 30: Worst times are 5-7 p.m. and best times are before 2 p.m.
• Dec. 31: Minimal traffic.

When DIA expects the busiest travel days over the holidays

DIA expects 750,000 passengers to travel through its security checkpoints between Dec. 19 and Dec. 28.

The expected busiest travel days are Dec. 23, 27 and 28.

Passengers can check current TSA security wait times at FlyDenver.com/security.