Travis Legal Offices represents Castle Pines crash victims on I-25, on Castle Pines Parkway, on Happy Canyon Road, and throughout Douglas County. Our Castle Rock office is approximately 15 miles south on I-25, and we have litigated personal injury cases at the Douglas County Courthouse for over 26 years. Castle Pines is a city that I-25 runs through the middle of. The highway physically bisects the community, creating east-side and west-side neighborhoods connected by overpasses while 160,000 vehicles pass between them every day. That highway is the source of the community’s accessibility and its primary source of danger.
In 2024, a semi-truck drove through an existing four-vehicle crash scene on southbound I-25 near Castle Pines and struck two pedestrians who had stepped out of their damaged vehicles. Those two people survived the first crash. They were standing on the shoulder, shaken but alive, doing what people do after a highway collision: exchanging information, checking damage, calling for help. Then an 80,000-pound truck came through the scene and hit them. They survived one crash only to be critically injured by a second one they never saw coming.
That is the reality of I-25 through Castle Pines. It is not just the crash that injures you. It is what happens after the crash, while you are standing on the shoulder of a highway carrying 160,000 vehicles per day, waiting for help that may be miles away. In 2024, two people were killed in a DUI crash on southbound I-25 near the Happy Canyon Road exit at 2:15 in the morning. A woman was killed after hitting an elk on the same stretch, and the secondary crashes that followed injured others. A diesel fuel tanker rolled over at Castle Pines Parkway, shutting down the interstate for a hazmat response. In March 2025, a motorcycle and car crash between Happy Canyon Road and Castle Pines Parkway closed northbound I-25.
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Most communities along the I-25 corridor are adjacent to the highway. Castle Pines is divided by it. I-25 runs directly through the city, separating the established west-side neighborhoods anchored by The Village at Castle Pines from the rapidly developing east side where thousands of new homes are being built. Residents cross the highway on overpasses at Castle Pines Parkway and Happy Canyon Road. Their children attend schools on both sides. Their daily errands require navigating the on-ramps, off-ramps, and interchange intersections that connect the two halves of their own community.
That bisection creates crash exposure that is fundamentally different from what residents of adjacent communities experience. A Highlands Ranch resident can go days without driving on I-25. A Castle Pines resident cannot get from one side of their city to the other without interacting with the interstate’s interchange infrastructure. Every trip to the grocery store, every school drop-off, every visit to a neighbor on the other side of the highway involves merging with or crossing the path of 160,000 vehicles per day. The interchanges at Castle Pines Parkway and Happy Canyon Road are not optional access points. They are the connective tissue of the community, and every interaction with them carries the risk of a high-speed collision.
As of 2024, the total population is just over 14,747, which represents a 44% increase compared to the 2020 census estimate of approximately 10,000 residents. This is equivalent to an average annual population increase of about 6.5%, and this rate of growth should continue until the city reaches its projected maximum population of around 33,000. As stated earlier, nearly all of the projected population increase (approximately 11,500) will be located in the area east of I-25. All of the approximately 11,500 new housing units (and therefore the resultant vehicle trips) are being built on the east side of I-25. Beginning in 2018, over 5,000 new homes were under construction; as of 2022 there are an additional 6,500 units that have been approved for construction.
All 11,500 of these new housing units will generate vehicle trips. According to the Institute of Transportation Engineers, the vehicle trip generation rate for each single-family residence is approximately 10 vehicle trips/day. At the point of “full build-out” of all of the approved residential units east of I-25, it is estimated that there will be an additional 115,000 vehicle trips/day generated by the increased use of the local roads. A large number of the daily vehicle trips generated by this new housing will require access to, or crossing of, I-25 at either the Castle Pines Parkway or Happy Canyon Road interchanges. With the addition of traffic from a community that is expected to grow to more than double in size, the existing 160,000 vehicles per day carrying capacity of the highway will also be required to accommodate additional traffic at both interchanges.
The available data on crashes from 2024 through 2025 represent the current levels of traffic volume. No crash data exists that accounts for the future traffic volumes expected when the city reaches full build-out.
I-25 carries approximately 160,000 vehicles per day through Castle Pines. The city’s population grew 44% since 2020 and is expected to reach 33,000 at full buildout. Approximately 11,500 new housing units (5,000 built or under construction, 6,500 approved) are concentrated on the east side of I-25. In 2024 alone: two killed in a DUI crash near Happy Canyon, one killed after hitting an elk, two pedestrians critically injured by a semi-truck at a crash scene, and a diesel tanker rollover triggered a hazmat closure at Castle Pines Parkway. Sources: CDOT; Douglas County; Colorado State Patrol; U.S. Census.
The incident where a semi-truck struck two pedestrians at an existing crash scene on southbound I-25 near Castle Pines is not an isolated event. It is a documented pattern on high-volume interstates. The Federal Highway Administration estimates that secondary crashes account for approximately 20% of all crashes on freeways. On I-25 through Castle Pines, the conditions that produce secondary crashes are present every day: high traffic volumes, high speeds, limited shoulder width in some sections, and the presence of crash debris and damaged vehicles in or near travel lanes.
Secondary crash liability involves a distinct legal analysis. The driver who caused the initial crash bears responsibility for setting the chain of events in motion. The driver who caused the secondary crash, the semi-truck that drove through the scene, bears responsibility for failing to observe and react to the hazard ahead. But the analysis may extend further. Under Colorado’s Move Over law (C.R.S. § 42-4-705), drivers approaching stationary emergency vehicles or crash scenes with activated warning lights must move over to a non-adjacent lane or slow to a safe speed. If the crash scene was not properly secured with flares, cones, or emergency vehicle positioning, the entity responsible for scene management, whether that is law enforcement or a towing company, may bear a share of liability for the secondary crash.
If you were injured in a secondary crash on I-25 near Castle Pines, the investigation must reconstruct two events: the initial crash and the secondary impact. Each event has its own at-fault parties, its own contributing factors, and its own causal relationship to your injuries. Travis Legal Offices has experience with multi-event crash reconstruction and understands how to separate the liability for the first crash from the liability for the second.
A woman was killed on southbound I-25 near Happy Canyon Road after her vehicle struck an elk. The crash was followed by secondary collisions that injured additional people. Elk and mule deer are common in the Castle Pines area, where the terrain along the I-25 corridor transitions from developed residential neighborhoods to undeveloped open space and the forested ridgelines that give the community its name. The $419 million I-25 Gap Project installed 28 miles of deer fencing and four wildlife crossings in the segment south of Castle Rock, but the Castle Pines stretch of I-25 does not have the same level of wildlife mitigation infrastructure.
A collision with an adult elk at highway speed is a catastrophic event. A bull elk weighs between 700 and 1,100 pounds. At 65 mph, the impact between a passenger vehicle and an elk of that mass generates forces that can collapse the roof structure, shatter the windshield inward, and push the engine block into the passenger compartment. The vehicle that struck the elk near Happy Canyon Road did not survive the impact intact. The driver did not survive.
Even if it is not the wildlife itself being hit in the crash, its presence can contribute to and inattentive distracted drivers, which are also dangerous. No one should be rear-ended or hit because someone else had their eyes off the road and instead focused on wildlife, but it does happen.
A diesel fuel tanker rolled over at the Castle Pines Parkway interchange, causing a major hazmat closure that shut down I-25 in both directions. Hazmat incidents on I-25 are a distinct category of crash that produces consequences extending far beyond the immediate collision. A diesel tanker rollover involves the risk of fuel ignition, environmental contamination, toxic fume exposure for crash scene responders and nearby residents, and prolonged highway closure that can last hours while hazmat teams contain and clean up the spill.
If you were injured in a hazmat crash on I-25 near Castle Pines, or if you were exposed to toxic substances released during a tanker incident, the legal analysis extends beyond ordinary negligence. Tanker trucks are regulated under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (49 C.F.R. Parts 390-399) and the Hazardous Materials Regulations (49 C.F.R. Parts 171-180). The trucking company that operates the tanker must comply with driver qualification standards, hours-of-service limits, vehicle maintenance schedules, and hazmat-specific training and certification requirements. A rollover that releases hazardous materials triggers an investigation into whether the driver was properly trained, whether the vehicle was properly maintained, whether the load was properly secured, and whether the trucking company’s safety management systems complied with federal law.
These cases involve both the personal injury to crash victims and potential environmental and toxic exposure claims. Travis Legal Offices has experience with commercial trucking litigation and understands the federal regulatory framework that governs tanker operations on I-25.
Castle Pines has an unusual emergency response structure. The city contracts with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office for law enforcement and is served by South Metro Fire Rescue for fire and EMS. Colorado State Patrol has jurisdiction on I-25. But The Village at Castle Pines, the 3,000-acre private gated community on the west side of I-25, operates its own emergency services organization: Castle Pines Emergency Services (CPES), which employs 40 full-time EMT-certified professionals providing 24/7 security, patrol, and emergency response within the gates at (303) 814-1345.
This dual-system structure means that a crash on I-25 adjacent to The Village is handled by South Metro Fire Rescue and Colorado State Patrol, while a medical emergency inside The Village gates may be initially responded to by CPES before county resources arrive. The presence of a private emergency services organization staffed with 40 EMT-certified professionals within a gated community is unique in this project. For crash victims on I-25 near Castle Pines, the relevant responders are South Metro Fire Rescue Station 36 and Colorado State Patrol, regardless of which side of I-25 the crash occurs on.
Castle Pines has no hospital within city limits. The nearest trauma centers are Sky Ridge Medical Center (Level II) in Lone Tree, approximately 5 to 7 miles north at 10101 RidgeGate Parkway ((720) 225-1000), and AdventHealth Castle Rock (Level III), approximately 8 to 10 miles south at 2350 Meadows Blvd ((720) 455-5000). For the most critical injuries, patients are transported to Swedish Medical Center (Level I) in Englewood ((303) 788-5000). Transport times from I-25 at Castle Pines to Sky Ridge are approximately 8 to 12 minutes under normal traffic conditions but can extend significantly during peak-hour congestion on I-25 through the Lone Tree corridor.
Castle Pines has a median household income of $189,918, one of the highest in the United States. The median home value is $827,900. The community is home to executives, business owners, physicians, attorneys, and professionals whose earning capacity reflects the educational attainment and career trajectory that put them in one of the most affluent cities in Colorado.
When a crash injures a high-income earner, the damages calculation reflects that income. Lost wages for a software executive earning $250,000 per year are fundamentally different from lost wages for a minimum-wage worker. Loss of earning capacity, the reduction in future income caused by permanent injuries, is calculated based on the plaintiff’s actual career trajectory, not on averages. Medical treatment costs may be higher because high-income individuals are more likely to carry comprehensive insurance and pursue aggressive treatment protocols. Pain and suffering, while not directly tied to income, is presented in the context of the plaintiff’s life: the activities they can no longer perform, the career milestones they will miss, the quality of life they have lost.
Travis Legal Offices has experience presenting high-value damages cases to Douglas County juries. The 23rd Judicial District draws its jury pool from a county with a median household income of approximately $130,000, one of the wealthiest counties in the nation. These jurors understand professional careers, understand the economic impact of a permanent disability on a high-earning household, and understand that the damages must reflect the actual life that was disrupted, not a hypothetical average.
Call 911 and dial *CSP (*277) from your cell phone. Colorado State Patrol has primary jurisdiction on I-25. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office ((303) 660-7505) responds to crashes on Castle Pines Parkway, Happy Canyon Road, and local roads.
If your crash occurred on I-25, get off the travel lanes immediately if you safely can. The secondary crash that injured two pedestrians at an existing crash scene near Castle Pines is a warning that applies to every I-25 crash: standing on the shoulder of a highway carrying 160,000 vehicles per day puts you in danger of being hit again. Move behind a guardrail or up an embankment if possible. If you cannot exit your vehicle, keep your seatbelt fastened, turn on your hazard lights, and stay inside.
If your crash involved wildlife, photograph the animal’s location, the road surface, any wildlife warning signs (or the absence of them), and any wildlife fencing in the area.
If the crash involves a commercial truck or tanker, do not allow the trucking company to dispose of the vehicle before your attorney has had an opportunity to inspect it. Trucking companies dispatch rapid-response teams to crash scenes to manage evidence. Contact Travis Legal Offices at (303) 547-1807 immediately so we can send a spoliation letter requiring preservation of the truck’s electronic logging device (ELD) data, maintenance records, driver qualification file, and all electronic evidence.
Accept ambulance transport to Sky Ridge Medical Center or AdventHealth Castle Rock if necessary. Do not refuse treatment. The distance to the nearest hospital means any delay between the crash and your first medical evaluation becomes a gap the insurance company will use against you.
Castle Pines exists because its residents chose to build a community in one of the most beautiful landscapes on the Colorado Front Range. The ponderosa pines that give the city its name, the views of the foothills, the golf courses that have hosted PGA Tour and BMW Championship events, the trails through the open space, all of it reflects a community that values quality of life and is willing to pay for it. The median household income of $189,918, the median home value of $827,900, these numbers are the financial expression of a community that has built something exceptional.
But that community is bisected by I-25. The highway that provides access to Denver, to the Denver Tech Center, to the economic opportunities that support Castle Pines’ prosperity, is also the highway that kills and injures Castle Pines residents every year. DUI drivers at 2:15 a.m. Semi-trucks plowing through crash scenes. Elk on the roadway at dusk. Tankers rolling at interchange ramps. The 160,000 vehicles that pass through Castle Pines every day include every type of driver and every type of hazard, and the only thing separating a Castle Pines family from any of them is the distance between their driveway and the nearest on-ramp.
Travis Legal Offices is 15 miles south of Castle Pines on I-25. We drive through Castle Pines on the same highway that injures our clients. The Douglas County Courthouse where your case will be filed is in Castle Rock, minutes from our office. We have litigated in the 23rd Judicial District for over 26 years, and we present Castle Pines cases to Douglas County juries who understand this community, understand the road, and understand that the damages in these cases must reflect the lives that were disrupted. Call (303) 547-1807. The consultation is free. The case is built for trial from day one.
Travis Legal Offices represents injured people throughout the I-25 corridor and surrounding communities in Douglas County, Arapahoe County, Elbert County, and El Paso County. Click any location below to learn about the specific roads, intersections, and crash patterns in your community.
Our office is located at 333 Perry Street, Suite 203, in Castle Rock, at the intersection of Perry Street and 4th Street on the second floor. We also meet clients at their homes, hospitals, or any convenient location throughout the corridor. If you cannot come to us, we will come to you.
Todd A. Travis founded Travis Legal after 26+ years representing injured Coloradans. His career includes complex personal injury work on both plaintiff and defense sides. That experience taught him exactly how insurance companies assess cases and which attorneys they undervalue. He’s tried cases to jury verdict and built this firm on a simple principle: catastrophic injury cases require genuine attention, not assembly-line processing. When Todd’s name appears on a demand letter, insurance adjusters respond differently. He answers client calls directly.
Jordan M. Travis joined the firm after law school, bringing a perspective shaped by growing up around trial preparation and legal strategy discussions. His generational approach complements the firm’s established reputation and adds contemporary research methods to how they build cases. Together, Todd and Jordan offer something larger firms can’t replicate: deep trial experience combined with current techniques and the capacity to give each client genuine attention. When you contact Travis Legal, you’re speaking with both attorneys. The same people who will manage your case from investigation through trial.
When you call, you reach Todd or Jordan. Not a receptionist. Not an intake specialist. Your actual attorney.
We work on contingency, meaning you pay nothing unless we win. The consultation is free. Given Colorado’s three-year statute of limitations, acting quickly matters. Evidence deteriorates. Video footage gets deleted. Witnesses relocate. Company records vanish.
Call (303) 547-1807 today to talk to us about your case for free.
Travis Legal Offices, LLC
333 Perry Street, Suite 203
Castle Rock, Colorado 80104
(303) 547-1807 info@travislegaloffices.com