another approach

[John McMillin]

Sorry I haven't written sooner. I'll study your proposed bill soon
and offer feedback. But now I want to share my thoughts about an
alternative approach that doesn't require trains, highway widening or
tolls.

You're right, this is a demand management problem. As we know,
there's a consistent rush hour up to the slopes, and back again in
the afternoon. Spreading out the traffic is the goal of your toll
idea, but this can also be done by convincing or compelling the ski
areas themselves to offer appealing alternatives to arriving at 9 and
leaving at 4 pm.

In brief, how about a new ticket price policy: "Half-days for Half-
Price."

I'm an aging fifty-something skier with a young daughter I'm bringing
to the sport. Neither of us feel a great need to ski for seven hours
at a time, but that's what we're led to do by high ticket prices.
Yes, there are half-day tickets available, but the discount is small.
It might be a more compelling proposition to ski Keystone or Copper
four hours for $40. Skiers could arrive late and leave early,
avoiding the crunch. The big ski areas already have electronic ticket
systems that could clock the hours paid for.

One ski area, Keystone, tried something like this in the eighties.
They offered a pack of lift coupons at $1.50 per ride up the
mountain. It was a nice, unhassled way to pay for just what you
wanted, alacarte. It never was tried again. I suspect ski areas make
most of their money when tired skiers are lazing around the lodge and
bar, so they want the day to be as long as possible. You'd face
resistance to this concept, but it might be easier than trying to
institute a new tolling system on a free public road. And thus way,
you're not penalizing residents of the I-70 corridor and
transcontinental motorists who happen to use the highway on Saturday
or Sunday.

Certainly something needs to be done. Four out of four times I've
tried to take I-70 to Summit this season, I've found the highway
closed or impassible, even on Mondays. So I've diverted to Echo
Mountain, which offers another solution t this puzzle-- more small,
local ski areas.