Breckenridge skier traffic snarls town in gridlock after I-70 crash sends hordes of travelers on detour on New Year’s Eve

Colorado Department of Transportation/Courtesy photo
A detour that sent thousands down Colorado Highway 9 during a three-hour closure of Interstate 70 following a multi-vehicle crash on New Years Eve is causing major traffic delays in Breckenridge.
Around 4:30 p.m. Dec. 31, the Google Maps app showed driving times of about 55 minutes from Frisco to Breckenridge, usually a 25 minute drive. Colorado Department of Transportation cameras along the highway showed heavy traffic along the highway.
The heavy traffic may be caused in part by a closure on Interstate 70 earlier in the day that led Colorado State Patrol to reroute traffic to U.S. Highway 285 via Colorado Highway 9 south over Hoosier Pass.
Summit County Sheriff’s Office public affairs sergeant Mike Schilling said that there is no incident along Colorado Highway 9 that is contributing to the traffic backup.
“I’ve been trying to go from Frisco to Breck for well over an hour,” Schilling said.
The influx of vehicles into Breckenridge coincided with a heavy traffic hour in town when Breckenridge Ski Resort nears its closing hour at 4 p.m. Town officials continue to discuss how to ease congestion on Park Avenue since the town often experiences heavy traffic as guests leave the slopes.
In a message, Breckenridge spokesperson Brooke Dunn said that holiday traffic is contributing to the gridlock.
“It is mostly holiday traffic and could be a little affected because of the big accident on the I-70, but all of our officers are out directing traffic and on calls dealing with the chaos,” Dunn said.
Editor’s note: This story will be updated as more information is received. Summit Daily News journalists Ryan Spencer, Kit Geary and Andrew Maciejewski contributed to this report.

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