 Poster: A snowHead
|
The vast majority of Colorado's skiers arrive by car, but growing congestion of the strategic 'Interstate 70' is forcing a re-think about expanding the small ski train service. One ambitious idea is to build a monorail in parallel to the I-70, but a local entrepreneur favours increased use of the existing railway track to Winter Park.
It all has interesting historical roots. Winter Park, the favoured resort of Denver ski enthusiasts before the construction of the highway, was built on the back of a rail service (as was Sun Valley in Idaho, America's first dedicated ski resort)...
The construction of Interstate 70 enabled a string of famous resorts, including Vail, to flourish from their easy access.
Now, the resorts of two counties in Colorado - Grand County and Summit County - compete for business, with transfer efficiency from Denver a key issue. And the famous road doesn't always operate as intended, not only because of increasing traffic. Only in the past 10 days a major rockfall with boulders "the size of vans" closed the I-70 route, as repair teams battled to repair huge holes in the road.
More is explained in this report from Denver Business Journal. / MSNBC News
If any US snowHeads would like to cast light on their experiences of the I-70, and whether they'd use rail to access ski resorts in the area, it would be interesting to read comments.
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Mon 6-12-04 14:33; edited 2 times in total
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
The I-70 is the main road up to all the resorts, even going to Winter Park, you have to go up it a bit. It can be a busy road at times.
The ski train to WP stops at the ticket office. You come off the train, walk across the corner of a car park, and you're at the Zephyr Express.
Unfortunately for those of us flying in to Denver, the airport is 20+ miles from the train station in Denver.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
|
The US has never really been one for an 'integrated public transport' policy!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
| u brain wrote: |
| The US has never really been one for an 'integrated public transport' policy! |
Whilst it is true that in many places in the US the car is king, there are places where they put a bit of effort into providing good quality public transport. Take the public transport around Portland, Oregon. You can even take public transport from Portland up to Mount Hood to go skiing and boarding. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
| u brain wrote: |
| The US has never really been one for an 'integrated public transport' policy! |
Whereas here in the UK we have an integrated public transport policy but no action to back it up 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ