Study: Traffic Gridlocks Keeping Weekend Skiers Feeling 'Down'
SUMMIT COUNTY – Thousands of Front Range skiers say they are skipping some ski trips because they are fed up with the weekend traffic gridlock along the Interstate 70 mountain corridor.
The results of a new research program found some silver linings and changing skier traffic habits, including an increase in carpooling since 2014's survey.
"It just not worth it to come on the weekends anymore," said a skier.
According to survey manager Chris Cares, there is some good news.
"In the time we've been tracking I-70 usage and travel patterns, we've observed a number of promising trends. Carpooling has grown and the use of the Morrison lots has increased, with Morrison lot users meeting at the Dinosaur lots for roughly half of all their winter mountain trips," Cares said.
But the survey also showed 69 percent of the Front Range Snowsports Panel stated that the frequency of their I-70 trips has been reduced due to congestion.
See Drone4 video captured for this report in the video clip below:
But major improvements that will cost millions of not billions are needed to truly solve the problem.
More carpooling is encouraged in the meantime.
LINK: Read The Entire I-70 User Study
Additional Resources
Track the ski and snowboard trails and lifts status across Colorado on Colorado Ski Country USA or on Vail Resorts' Snow.com page
Matt Kroschel covers news throughout Colorado working from the CBS4 Mountain Newsroom. Send story ideas to mrkroschel@cbs.com and connect with him on Twitter @Matt_Kroschel.