2018-12-12_REVISION - M2018016 (7)

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Due to increased return-trip dump-truck traffic from Denver to Empire, cars driving ' along I-70 will incur increased vehicle operating costs, lost time,wasted fuel and the costs of increased traffic accidents. Since 2010 traffic fatalities in Colorado increased significantly from 450 in 2010 to 468 in 2017. Preliminary data suggest ' that deaths were reduced in 2018, however." With greater truck traffic from the DMRM, these very recent reductions in traffic deaths could be reversed on the I-70 Mountain Corridor. Risks to Outdoor Recreation tClear Creek County is the gateway for outdoor tourism in Colorado. Some 84.7 million tourists visited Colorado in 2017, up from 82.4 million in 2016. That 2.8 percent increase in visitors was 40 percent higher than the national average. Much of Colorado's tourism is outdoor recreational (Table 2). The total economic output associated with outdoor recreation in 2017 was $62.5 billion dollars, contributing $35.0 billion dollars to the Colorado Gross Domestic Product. Tourism represented 18.7 percent of the Colorado labor force and paid $21.4 billion dollars in wages and salaries. Recreation activities contribute $9.4 billion dollars in federal, state and local tax revenue. 78 DMRM gravel-truck traffic would use the only interstate connection from eastern to ' western Colorado. I-70 experiences heavy traffic and subsequently high delays particularly during winter, but in summer as well,when travelers are returning from mountain ski areas to the Denver. I-70 frequently serves 50,000 vehicles per day and close to 5,000 vehicles per hour during peak hours.79 Weekend travelers returning to Denver often encounter significant traffic jams with hours-long delays.80 Seventeen of the 26 major ski resorts in Colorado are immediate) accessible b I- I Y Y 70.81 The industry contributed roughly$5 billion to the state economy and supported 46,000 jobs.82 Colorado Ski Country USA reported that skier visits at its 24- ' 77 https://www.codot.gov/library/traffic/safety-crash-data/fatal-crash-data-city- county/Colorado_Historical_Fatalities_Graphs.pdf ' 78http://cpw.state.co.us/Documents/Trails/SCORP/2017EconomicContributions_SCORP.pdf 79http://tft.eng.usf.edu/tftSO/tftSO-papers/P15-Marlina.pdf 80 Prolonged time sitting in traffic jams can have negative health effects from stiff necks to ' increased risk of urinary tract infections, and blood clots. In addition, noise pollution caused from traffic congestion has been linked to negative health outcomes. 81 The Mountain Resort Region and Western Slope ski resorts are:Aspen Highlands,Aspen ' Mountain,Arapahoe Basin, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Buttermilk, Copper Mountain, Echo Mountain, Keystone, Loveland, Powderhorn, Ski Cooper, Snowmass, SolVista, Sunlight,Vail, and Winter Park/Mary Jane. ' 82 Chris Linsmayer, public affairs director for Colorado Ski Country,USA. https://www.snowsports.org/top-states-skiers-arent-think/ 26