Any Denver-ites? Roads 'N Snow

[Markintosh]

Hey all -

Heading to Denver tomorrow...not for Green Tourism, and not to rally the Broncos. The Ski and Snowboard Industry tradeshow is in town.

The forecast has been pretty benign for awhile and all I have reserved is an economy car...basically DEN to downtown and around town a bit. Since I live in Tahoe, snow doesn't scare me much.

But the forecast is now showing 4-8 inches for tomorrow and that could be dicey for FWD.

How flat is the Denver metro area?
How well are main roads and side streets cleared?

Looking at the pics of an inch of snow paralyzing the south today...I would rather not end up sleeping at the nearest Home Depot.

Current rental cost is $55...upgrading to AWD if available would be closer to $200.

Committing to public transportation would be around $110 best I can tell for the trip.

[Anthony]

Denver is pretty flat. Front wheel drive with snows work well for most situations. Front wheel drive with no snows is sketchy. Heading into the mountains would be a different story. 4wd with snows required.

[DRR]

Denver's pretty flat. And they're always well prepared. 4-8" is nothing in Denver. The south is wholly unprepared for any sort of weather. Add to that, inexperienced drivers who are used to nothing but hot and dry conditions, and that's where you get disaster. Denver doesn't have either problem.

The greater question is always, how fast does it fall. If it's 4-8" over time, then no problem. If it's a fast storm, there may be more of a problem getting roads cleared in time.

A routes are always cleared efficiently. B routes are pretty good too. C routes and residential may take a bit more time. I wouldn't worry about the FWD at all.

Mountains are a different story. If you're up in the mountains and it starts snowing - expect massive delays. There's only a couple of routes down from the mountains to Denver, it's a simple matter of throughput (lack of it.)

[particleman]

The rental will most likely have all-season tires. FWD will be fine. Like any vehicle, just moderate your speed if it is slick. But, you know that already. If you are heading to the hills, chains might be required for non-winter tires, once you near the tunnel through the Divide.

The main streets will be plowed, sanded, and maybe dosed with mag-chloride. It has been warmer for the past couple of days, so it may take a while for the snow to start to stick, as we say in these parts, and begin to accumulate on the roads.

Also, don't forget about potential parking fees at your hotel when running the budget.

Round trip from DIA is at most $22 on the SkyRide. $4.50 for a round trip via bus and/or light rail to a major portion of the Denver Metro area.

If you wish, send a PM if you need more info on transit options or brewery tasting room tips.

[Markintosh]

Thanks Particleman and others. Flat is all I need to hear. I commute 80 miles a day, usually in snow...but not his year. Ran the snowblower for the second time this winter this morning....yikes. 6 inches of new snow overnight is the most we have had since the first week of December. We should have more than 6 feet on the ground right now...

Did you say beer? -D

[particleman]

No snow and 45 deg F as of 3:24 MST Jan 30. It is overcast though.

[maco]

There are some hills in town that do give people trouble sometimes. I've never had a problem with them other than having them blocked by cars that can't make it up or down (safely) the hill.

Enjoy Denver, it's a great city!