Entrance to Aspen

Aspen's Transportation Future

For more than 30 years, the City of Aspen, alongside our community partners and local government agencies, has been discussing the best transportation options in and out of Aspen - an effort known as the "Entrance to Aspen". 

Entrance to Aspen logo

The city of Aspen City Council at a work session on July 7, 2025, provided direction to Re-Evaluate the 1998 Entrance to Aspen Environmental Impact Statement and Record of Decision. At the July 22, 2025, the City of Aspen City Council approved a contract amendment with Jacobs Engineering to conduct a re-evaluation of the August 1998 Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) and Record of Decision (ROD).

Current Bridge Status

The Castle Creek Bridge was built in 1961. It was rated “fair” by CDOT in 2024. Read information about the bridge inspection in this letter dated Dec. 6, 2024 . If the bridge falls below a fair rating, CDOT could put weight limits on vehicles crossing the bridge in order to protect the safety of our community.

City of Aspen - Castle Creek Bridge Inspection 2024: In 2024, Jacobs presented results of a hands-on inspection of the physical condition of the bridge from November and a Colorado Department of Transportation-style bridge evaluation report. The summary of the field inspection is provided within the SH 82 Over Castle Creek Bridge Feasibility Study

Correspondence from CDOT: The City of Aspen has three times requested information from CDOT about community and Council questions related to the Entrance to Aspen. The responses are available here 

Contact Us

  1. Emily Ford

    Communications Specialist
    Email Emily
    Phone: 1-970-379-9373
    More Information

Click here for more information about the history of the Entrance to Aspen
Click here for more information about the Preferred Alternative
Click here for more information about upcoming events

Constraints of the S-Curves

The S-Curves have a long history. In 1891 when Pitkin County decided to build a bridge into town, officials chose the current location because the Colorado Midland Railroad was already coming into town on a trestle over Castle Creek, entering on what is now a pedestrian bridge. A large smelting operation, known as the Lixiviation Works (now the Holden-Marolt Museum), was in this location as well, inhibiting a direct link to Main Street. As the population and vehicle travel have grown in Aspen, the community has experienced a bottleneck at the S-Curves. This creates limitations including: 

  • Only 700-800 cars per hour can navigate through the S-Curves due to their shape and size.
  • The current traffic alignment and travel patterns impact neighborhoods.
  • Trackless trams, light rail, or other new technology can’t be implemented due to lack of space.
  • Current backups out of town push vehicle traffic into the West End neighborhood causing safety issues and disruptions for residents.