Photo: Evan Meyer
The state of Colorado is banking that you would. This winter, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) plans to introduce congestion pricing along I-70. The express lane on the highway will be open roughly 72 days a year (weekends and Monday holidays) to those willing to pay a little extra to get the mountains faster.
The price for using this express lane will range from $3 to $30 dollars, depending on how congested the other two lanes are. The more congested the regular highway is, the more expensive use of the express lane will be. This seems like a fair and shrewd offering. The congestion pricing will be available along a 13-mile stretch, in between the Empire exit and Central City Parkway. CDOT will be voting on exact fares in the next few weeks.
Thedenverchannel.com
This is great news for those of us that make the trek from Denver to the slew of mountains along I-70. If you work in the Mile-High City, and make the mad dash to your favorite resort on a Friday afternoon, hitting traffic can really dampen the stoke and high-energy of your short road trip.
I have a feeling that CDOT will find this idea to be successful. Skiing and snowboarding are expensive sports, so I can only imagine that those who partake will be willing to spend a mere fraction of a lift ticket to avoid sitting in traffic.
