County to add fees for shuttle

The Quandary Peak and Mccullough Gulch trailhead parking and shuttle program will continue into this summer with a few changes, including riding fares and potential discounts for locals.

Summit County commissioners discussed the shuttle program, which began last summer, at a work session Tuesday.

The pilot program was successful in managing crowding at the popular 14er trailhead last year, prompting the county’s Open Space and Trails Department to expand it for another year.

The idea of the program was to encourage people to use public transit to get to the trailhead, which ultimately will help the county meet sustainability goals and decrease crowds in the area. This summer, the county plans to run three 14- passenger vans, potentially adding a fourth, all of which will be operated by the Summit Stage.

Last year, the county absorbed the cost of the shuttle operation, making it free for everyone who rode it. To expand the program and make it sustainable into the future, the county is adding a fare structure to the shuttle, Open Space and Trails director Katherine King said.

The commissioners tentatively agreed on a fee structure that would cost $ 15 for visitors and $ 5 for local riders. Those fees would be on top of the cost to park in the Breckenridge South Gondola lot, where the shuttle will pick up riders.

Although charging a fee for the shuttle isn’t ideal, the commissioners said it’s a part of trail management.

“There is not the federal dollars to keep up with the management of these areas and the way that now people are exploring the outdoors,” Commissioner Elisabeth Lawrence said.

The commissioners also are looking at ways to incentivize shuttle usage by changing the parking fees for the lot outside of the trailhead. Last year, the parking cost $ 20 for a half day or $ 50 for the full day.

The county is considering altering the cost of parking to be $ 30 to $ 50 for a full day and $ 5 to $ 15 for three- or four- hour blocks. The commissioners still need to make a final decision on the exact cost of parking, but they did agree parking should be free after 3 p. m., which was a suggestion from county staffers.

“Some of the feedback from residents in the area was, ‘ What a bummer. I used to go over here and go out for an hour after work,’ ” King said. “So we’re trying to provide that option.”

Some of the commissioners were concerned that free parking after 3 p. m. would incentivize people to start hiking Quandary at that time, which is typically considered unsafe. Usually hikers access the McCullough Gulch trails after 3 p. m. rather than Quandary, but visitors are less likely to know that information.

King and her staff agreed to put disclaimers on the county’s reservation website and at the trailheads to remind people not to hike Quandary after 3 p. m.

The shuttle system is tentatively scheduled to run seven days a week from June 15 through September 18.