There is more to Aspen Alley than gold leaves and fast dirt.
This popular trail off Boreas Pass sees a ton of love from hikers and bikers. But according to AllTrails traffic spikes by nearly 500% in the fall, when leaf peepers on foot say they are running into trouble with downhill mountain bikers – sometimes literally. They report close calls at high speed and tense arguments over who has right of way. (Answer: Uphill traffic.)
For the first time in history town of Breckenridge will consider three weeks of “alternating traffic” on Aspen Alley. The town open space board recommends odd days for hikers and even days for bikers from Sept. 13 to Oct. 5 with downhill travel only on bike days. Town staff and volunteers will post up at the trailheads, top and bottom, recommending other trails to get your fall color fix.
The open space board picked this option out of three possible solutions. A second was to sit back and collect more data. A third was to close Aspen Alley completely to bicycles from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in peak fall season. Cops and ticketing were never considered because this would require and ordinance, and staffing is already stretched thin.
A recent social media poll shows most users (34%) want alternating daily traffic. Just 19% want limits on weekends. Only 7% want nothing to change.
Open space commissioners admit they were surprised by these results, saying in a staff memo, “We believe that with the proposed messaging, along with the periodic presence of staff and our partner agencies on the trail, that the need for active enforcement will be minimized.”
The final decision is with Breck town council and Summit County commissioners. Both groups must approve the plan before it goes live.
But that decision hangs in limbo. County commissioners have canceled today’s regular board meeting. Town council might discuss