By Jason Auslander, The Aspen Times
The first bits of information from a recently authorized, nearly $500,000 study of the Entrance to Aspen were presented to area elected officials last week, with the chief focus on the particulars of a light-rail system.
Thursday’s presentation to elected board members from Aspen, Pitkin County and Snowmass Village centered mainly on the route of a potential light-rail system from the intersection of Brush Creek Road and Highway 82 into downtown Aspen. The use of buses also is being considered, though that topic was not nearly as large a part of the discussion.
The Entrance to Aspen is a decades-long debate about how to alleviate bottleneck traffic jams along the S-curves on Aspen’s westside as Highway 82 winds its way into town. The issue has been the subject of 27 votes in the city and county during the past 40 years.
On Thursday, former Colorado Department of Transportation official and current consultant Ralph Trapani said construction costs of the 6-mile rail line between Brush Creek and Aspen have not yet been worked out but should be available in the spring. But he didn’t sugarcoat the future price tag.
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