OFFICIAL I70 BITCH THREAD....

[montanaskier]

The fine for disobeying the chain law and blocking the highway is currently $1000, FYI.
http://www.cotrip.org/truckers.htm

Not enough....

[adrenalated]

Not enough....

It certainly doesn't seem to be. The current fine is higher than I expected though.

[grskier]

There is lack of effective enforcement on current laws, which also need to be updated. It's a pretty compound issue.

[Danno]

It's drivers and their cars

I'm the first one to shit all over cdot for being a worthless poorly run and funded organization but its drivers who are unprepared for the conditions

whats the first thing some clown does when he moves to colorado they go buy an suv because they need that for all the "mountain driving" they are going to do from highlands ranch to lafayette yet they have no real practical knowledge of driving in ice and snow, how many days a year does the front range have shitty roads on average? not many

Question from someone new to the area

Question for someone new to the area: did you buy your SUV yet, and have you practiced rallying on snow yet?

[Danno]

There is lack of effective enforcement on current laws, which also need to be updated. It's a pretty compound issue.

yep. When there's no enforcement, the fine is effectively $0.

[rpg]

Question for someone new to the area: did you buy your SUV yet, and have you practiced rallying on snow yet?

Lived in BC previously and have an AWD sedan (sorry, no SUV) with brand new snow tires . I'll be sure to crash out of the way. A little ice and snow driving practice in a big open area is always fun though!

Was mostly just curious how people deal with it (on a budget), if as it seems, people discover at 3:30PM that they're stuck in Vail for the night.

[WTF is dat]

sorry folks but I-70 is going to get much worse before it gets any better. A little budget constraint called Tabor, and the elections that occurred last week all but guarantees that CDOT will be horribly underfunded for the next few years at least.

Hey maybe by 2040 we will be able to figure this out.

[WTF is dat]

Question from someone new to the area: when Vail Pass gets closed, how long does it typically remain closed for, how long can it remain closed for, and will it stay closed all night if it is absolutely chucking down snow?

Living in Silverthorne and just starting to think about logistics of what i'll do if I get stuck in Vail...

Usually when it closes it takes a couple of hours to reopen. If it is dumping snow, maybe a little bit more. I have never been forced to spend the night in Vail - it generally reopens

[rpg]

Usually when it closes it takes a couple of hours to reopen. If it is dumping snow, maybe a little bit more. I have never been forced to spend the night in Vail - it generally reopens

Perfect! That's what I was hoping to hear. It's never a big deal to hang out and have a beer or do a little reading, being stuck overnight would be much worse though.
----

Someone made the suggestion earlier in this thread of requiring all vehicles to use 4WD and snow tires or 2WD, snow tires and snow chains. This makes the most sense to me. If you add a huge fine for violations ($1k will get the point across to non-commercial drivers) but only enforce it when you have to go rescue/tow someone you don't add any real enforcement cost/delay (vs. checkpoints like some places use) but you add a very effective method to discourage drivers whose vehicles simply aren't equipped for the conditions. Put a few signs up, let the media know, and fine a few people and word will get out very quickly.

I'm not sure there's anything you can do about idiot drivers with the right equipment but wrong brains -- then again, i've got to imagine there are fewer of those than the people that have neither equipment nor brains?

[Danno]

also, for Vail Pass closures, often times Tennessee Pass and Fremont Pass do not close, so you can still get there from here (sometimes) if you're willing to go around.

[MakersTeleMark]

Assessing points to a CDL driver hits harder than a fine. It would be nice to implement that, and it costs nothing.

[capulin overdrive]

Vail Pass might be deferent?

But they'll damn sure close the tunnels down over night, and have even been caught at Idaho Springs when they've shut down east bound as well.


Have spent the night on 70 twice for sure, they try to get you off into the towns and they set up shelters in the school gyms.

[Dufforito]

I70 is a shit show due to volume and it's compounded by the weather. Trying to get out of downtown Denver at rush hour always sucks and you throw in weather, even frigging rain, and it takes way longer. Same deal for I70. It's just too many people leaving a certain area with limited space. If it was just dumbass drivers, bald tires, texans, tourons, and semis wo chains, then 285 would be just as shitty. 285 can be shitty, but it's JV compared to I70.

[BLOOWERPOW]

Boss drives a tiny Toyota Yaris. Thinks he's going to be ok this winter in the Roaring Fork Valley. Just waiting to get a call asking for a ride...

[capulin overdrive]

Heard back from CDOT.

They let me know chain laws were in effect this weekend, and appreciate my feedback.


So basically a fuck you very much!

[Name Redacted]

Pretty psyched that this thread seems to run concurrent to the weather thread. Sure, the roads are shit, but that happen BECAUSE IT'S SNOWING!!!! So STFU if the road sucks. Sure, this morning, I saw multiple 2wd cars struggling, in the left lane, with tires balder than a 50 year old ski instructor. But we still made it happen right people?! Welcome back winter.

[The SnowShow]

So even though it was a day full of heavy snow, there were no I70 closures (that I know of). What's the difference compared to the other day? Less ice?

[bean]

Just saw this:

http://denver.cbslocal.com/2014/11/1...mountain-woes/

Interesting..

[Soups]

"The state patrol is also considering enacting chain laws for passenger vehicles closer to the metro area, something that’s common in southwest Colorado."

Why consider? Just fucking do it. They just acknowledged in the two paragraphs before the huge problem ill equipped cars are.

[klauss]

Last drove on I-70 in 2003. It was getting out of hand even back then.

What is this bald tire enforcement? I have never heard of that. Even new all seasons are going to suck on ice. Why isn't the rule that you get a large fine if in snow corridor without mountain snowflake stamped on tires or chains on. period. I think in oregon you can get away with having chains in the car, rather than on the tires, but it is getting so bad here too with all of the accidents causing huge delays.

[thaar]

I certainly don't understand why the chain restrictions don't apply for passenger vehicles along I-70. When I was in Reno/Tahoe years ago, the law was chains or snow tires required. Enacting it could potentially alleviate a bunch of the headaches we have.

[Name Redacted]

I70 is a higher volume traffic than most other mountain corridors with these conditions. Asking thousands of drivers to chain up, would require huge parking lots for chain up areas, probably slow things down even more because chains have a speed limit, and people would still ignore the rule.

[Below Zero]

Agree with thaar and klauss. I have no idea (and if there is a reason, I'd love to know) why there isn't a law to have snow tires for winter driving on the I70 corridor. Not a fan of chains for passenger vehicles because you can only drive, what like, 40 mph max or something like that? I've said it before but I think there should be a law that says:

1. You must have snow tires to drive I70 in the winter months. There is not a "checkpoint" but if you are the cause of an accident, spun out on the side of the road (or in the road), and you don't have snow tires, then you receive a hefty fine.
2. You must have a "snow driving" endorsement on your license to drive the I70 corridor in winter. These tests could be given every five years. I amazes me to see how many people drive like absolute pussies (or are scared to death) when driving in even the slightest amount of snow. You need to practice driving in snow and understand your vehicle to drive in snow.

What do you guys think?

[Soups]

I70 is a higher volume traffic than most other mountain corridors with these conditions. Asking thousands of drivers to chain up, would require huge parking lots for chain up areas, probably slow things down even more because chains have a speed limit, and people would still ignore the rule.

The chain laws in SW CO are only for non-4WD/AWD, non-snow tire equipped vehicles. Is it different elsewhere? Also, if you ignore the rule and cause an accident or get stuck, it sounds like you get a decent ticket already, $133 to $657.

Not sure it would slow things down even more do to the chain speed limit. If there's a need for chains you shouldn't be driving more than the 50mph or whatever the chains speed limit is anyway. I'd rather go at a snail's pace of 40mph and get to my destination rather than have the passes/tunnel closed do to spinouts/accidents.

[Name Redacted]

The chain laws in SW CO are only for non-4WD/AWD, non-snow tire equipped vehicles. Is it different elsewhere? Also, if you ignore the rule and cause an accident or get stuck, it sounds like you get a decent ticket already, $133 to $657.

Not sure it would slow things down even more do to the chain speed limit. If there's a need for chains you shouldn't be driving more than the 50mph or whatever it is the chains speed limit is.

How many cars per hour drive on any given road in SW CO? Might be a few less than the thousands who drive I70. Where are all of these cars going to chain up? What will the pavement look like after one season of chain laws?