A-Basin set to add parking, underpass

SUMMIT COUNTY - With the new terrain in Montezuma Bowl proving a big draw for A-Basin, the ski area will act this summer to expand parking capacity.

A plan to add 200 new spots in the area across from the Colorado Department of Transportation facility is part of A-Basin's summer work plan, said U.S. Forest Service winter sports ranger Joe Foreman. A pedestrian underpass will also be built this summer.

"We have both those proposals in front of us," Foreman said. "There's a couple of T's to cross," Foreman said, explaining that the ski area and Forest Service are working with the state transportation agency to finalize the design of the project.

Some highway widening and tree removal will be required for the parking expansion, Foreman said.

Both projects have already been approved as part of A-Basin's master plan, which required detailed environmental studies. Foreman said the new spots will meet the parking needs identified by the ski area's master plan.

A-Basin is headed for a record skier-visit season, said spokesperson Leigh Hierholzer. March was a record month for A-the ski area in terms of skier numbers, she said.

There have already been several weekends this season when the available parking at A-Basin filled up completely, leading to traffic backups on Highway 6. Historically, the parking crunch peaks in the spring when the rest of Summit County's ski areas close down.

A-Basin is working with Keystone, the Colorado State Patrol and CDOT to make spring season parking work smoothly the rest of this season, Foreman said. The hope is to encourage people to car pool and shuttle. When the ski area's parking spots fill up, skiers will be diverted to the parking lots at Keystone, where they can catch a shuttle bus up to A-Basin.

In previous seasons, illegal parking along the highway and pedestrian traffic have been a serious safety concern for the Colorado State Patrol, leading to aggressive enforcement of parking rules. Numerous cars have been towed in order to keep the highway clear and safe for tankers and other trucks transporting hazardous materials,

The ski area recognized that the Montezuma Bowl expansion heightened the need for new parking, Hierholzer said, explaining that the new spots were planned along with the terrain addition.

The capacity for new parking at A-Basin is limited by the topographical constraints of the narrow North Fork valley.

"They'll never be able to build enough for all the people that could arrive on any given day," Foreman said. Parking at A-Basin, like at other area resorts, needs to be integrated with other programs like car-pooling and shuttle services, Foreman said.

Bob Berwyn can be reached at (970) 331-5996, or at bberwyn@summitdaily.com.