Skiing Colorado’s Rocky Mountains is a one-of-a-kind experience. But when chasing powder comes with a gridlocked, eight-hour drive home, one has to wonder if there’s a better way.
Such was the case last week when blizzard conditions prompted the closures of multiple mountain passes, including Berthoud Pass, that wreaked havoc on Western Slope travel. As some passes remained closed for several days, drivers were forced to converge on the few remaining open roads. The result was chaos and public safety hassles.
In Silverthorne, one local paper described the traffic logjam as having countless impacts on local residents and operations. Among the most prominent concerns was the hourslong gridlock that threatened public safety. This included blocking emergency crews from reaching potential medical or fire victims, emptying of food and supplies from local stores during bad weather, delays of medical care workers for home visits and an inability to plow roads, exacerbating unsafe travel conditions.
Meanwhile, Front Range residents and out-of-state skiers who were stuck in their cars lamented the lengthy drive and inability to get home after the holiday weekend. In the end, many shared stories of up to eight or nine hours for what might normally take three or four hours. Talk about ending the weekend with a bang.
Yet last week’s mountain mayhem was hardly the first time Coloradans have found themselves bottlenecked in traffic. As the state’s population has increased by double the national rate at 15% over the past decade or so, our state’s transportation infrastructure hasn’t kept up pace. Now, regardless of the season, outdoor recreationists of all kinds flood Colorado’s mountain roads to a standstill, especially I-70 on the weekends, prompting frustrations among visitors and locals alike.
Finding solutions hasn’t been easy, but for the reasons illustrated above we must start viewing robust public transit mountain service as a public safety matter. While everyone should have access to our state’s treasures, it’s not fair to put the burden on local communities in a way that makes basic services and access unsafe. Increasing the availability of public transit for outdoor recreators would bridge the gap of providing mountain access with fewer headaches of excess traffic.
There are some options for public transit currently available, though it’s hardly enough for the current volume and need. For example, Colorado’s Snowstang offers service from the Front Range to popular ski resorts including Copper, Arapahoe Basin, Loveland, Steamboat and Breckenridge. Colorado’s Bustang runs bus lines statewide, and the Winter Park Express train takes riders in the winter.
Yet there are significant drawbacks to each that are prohibiting more recreators from using these services. First, they generally run on limited days and/or hours, making access more difficult. Second, many are based out of Denver, which is out of the way for many on the Front Range. Third, ticket prices and availability can vary and are often too costly or cumbersome compared to driving.
Fourth, the lack of route flexibility and limited service can leave passengers stranded such as my friend experienced last week while trying to return home from Steamboat Springs. Even as passenger cars rerouted through Silverthorne, the buses didn’t, forcing her and others to find single-car access home instead.
All of these are deterrents to regular use and reliance on public transit.
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At the same time, there are practical features that would likely enhance public transit use by recreators specifically. For example, offering affordable day or seasonal gear lockers at transit centers and final destinations eases concerns about having to lug around heavy gear.
Similarly, offering multiple pick-up and drop-off times throughout the day is necessary to provide varied access and reassurance to adventurers who can’t always predict exactly how long their activity will take — no one wants to risk missing the one and only bus home due to unpredictable slowdowns on a trail or at a resort. Plus, basic services such as charging stations, potable water and element-proof waiting shelters could go a long way to encouraging travelers to opt for buses or trains over cars.
Most importantly, we need to eliminate the need to purchase a one-time ticket in advance or provide exact cash on-site. These are no longer easy or practical options, especially in the mountains, and just as Colorado offers an annual state park pass and CORSAR cards at a discount to outdoor recreating residents, public transit access to and from popular destinations should be an available service to purchase at a discount as well.
As someone who has long split time between the Front Range and Western Slope, I empathize with residents on both sides of the divide. There are tangible concerns for all involved, and improving mountain transit seems like one small way we can work together to make a positive impact. Now if we can only agree on who gets the first tracks on a powder day!
Trish Zornio is a scientist, lecturer and writer who has worked at some of the nation’s top universities and hospitals. She’s an avid rock climber and was a 2020 candidate for the U.S. Senate in Colorado. Trish can be found on Twitter @trish_zornio
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