{"id":1317993,"date":"2020-01-30T23:16:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-31T06:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.postindependent.com\/new-traction-law-showing-early-progress\/"},"modified":"2020-01-30T23:16:00","modified_gmt":"2020-01-31T06:16:00","slug":"new-traction-law-showing-early-progress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/local-news\/new-traction-law-showing-early-progress\/","title":{"rendered":"New traction law showing early progress"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Under the state’s new traction law, drivers of vehicles with inadequate tires can be fined $650 for causing an accident or causing a lane closure.<\/strong>
<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

State officials for years have tried to simplify Colorado\u2019s winter traction laws. The Colorado Legislature in 2019 passed such a law after years of trying.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s still early, but the new law seems to be having some success.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are seeing more awareness of the topic \u2014 we\u2019re seeing questions all the time,\u201d said Andrew Hogle, a public information officer for the Colorado Department of Transportation. But, Hogle added, there\u2019s a \u201cways to go\u201d regarding public understanding of the law.<\/p>\n

With that in mind, here\u2019s a quick rundown of the basics.<\/p>\n

The law is aimed mostly at Interstate 70 between Dotsero and Morrison.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the simple part. The law gets most complicated regarding two-wheel-drive vehicles.<\/p>\n

Those vehicles need to have \u201cwinter-capable\u201d tires. Motorists need to look at their tires\u2019 sidewall markings to determine winter capability. Hogle said those tires have one of two markings, either a snowflake or the designation \u201cM+S,\u201d meaning \u201cmud and snow.\u201d Those tires must have a minimum tread depth of 3\/16 inch.<\/p>\n

Put a sock on it<\/p>\n

Vehicles without winter-capable tires must carry alternate traction devices. That means either chains or a device called an AutoSock. Name brand AutoSocks can be $100 per pair or more. Still, that\u2019s less expensive than new tires. It can also be less expensive than a ticket for not having adequate tires or traction devices. That ticket is $130. Drivers can be cited for that offense if they\u2019re pulled over for another reason, in any conditions, at any time between September and May. If an officer checks, and you don\u2019t have the right tires or traction devices, you may get a ticket.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re running on inadequate tires and cause a lane closure during a snowstorm, you will get much more expensive ticket \u2014 $650.<\/p>\n

Hogle said the good news is that M+S tires seem to be becoming something of an \u201cindustry standard,\u201d particularly as original equipment on new cars.<\/p>\n

That means more rental cars come with M+S tires. In fact, Hogle said, most rental cars at Denver International Airport are now equipped with M+S tires.<\/p>\n

But, he added, it\u2019s up to customers to determine what kind of tires a vehicle has.<\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately drivers are responsible,\u201d Hogle said. \u201cWe want people to know as much as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

The law is more simple for four-wheel or all-wheel-drive vehicles. Hogle said the law mandates only a tread depth of 3\/16 inch.<\/p>\n

Hogle said early data is encouraging. Every winter is different, particularly regarding when storms hit. But, Hogle said, the 2019-2020 season so far is similar to the 2017-2018 season. There seem to be fewer lane-closing incidents this winter just like two seasons ago, he said.<\/p>\n

Winter tires are best<\/p>\n

Still, tires with snowflakes are most likely to work better in winter conditions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe encourage everyone to have winter tires,\u201d Hogle said. \u201cBut it\u2019s a cost concern \u2014 not everyone can afford a second set of tires.\u201d<\/p>\n

First responders from the town of Vail spend a lot of time on the west side of Vail Pass. Vail Police Chief Dwight Henninger said he believes the traction law in its first year may have resulted in some \u201cminor improvements \u2014 maybe more than I\u2019ve seen.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Henninger\u2019s view, there\u2019s a still a lot more to be done regarding public education about the law.<\/p>\n

While acknowledging that the law\u2019s details are \u201creally complicated,\u201d Henninger said there needs to be a better communications effort to the public. But, he said, the Colorado State Patrol, Department of Transportation and other state and local agencies are working on education efforts that could be in place when the next winter season begins.<\/p>\n

Hogle acknowledged the complexity of the current regulations, adding that the Legislature may tweak the existing law in this session.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, though, the regulations are too much to put on a bumper sticker or variable message sign on an interstate, he said.<\/p>\n

But Henninger said, efforts to keep I-70 traffic flowing have improved since a massive storm in early 2014 resulted in some travelers facing a 10-hour drive from Edwards to Denver.<\/p>\n

No matter what the regulations, though, Henninger said people should have an emergency kit in their vehicles, just in case. Henninger\u2019s own kit includes clothes, food and an emergency blanket, an extra pair of boots and a shovel.<\/p>\n

And, he added, while keeping the highway clear is better than it was, another giant storm, or a serious avalanche, could result in another traffic disaster.<\/p>\n

Vail Daily Business Editor Scott Miller can be reached at smiller@vaildaily.com<\/a> of 970-748-2930.<\/p>\n

via:: Post Independent<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Under the state’s new traction law, drivers of vehicles with inadequate tires can be fined $650 for causing an accident or causing a lane closure. State officials for years have tried to simplify Colorado\u2019s winter traction laws. The Colorado Legislature in 2019 passed such a law after years of trying. It\u2019s still early, but the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[160],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1317993","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-09-06 02:56:01","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSKE Ski Country","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1317993","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1317993"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1317993\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1317993"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1317993"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1317993"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}