Aspen Public Radio Podcasts

Should it be more difficult to change Colorado’s constitution?

Amendment 69 - “Colorado Care” A “yes” vote would change the state constitution to set up a universal health care system, a “no” vote would keep health care as is.

Pitkin County commissioners decided Tuesday to spend $250,000 to build a turnaround area for oversized trucks heading up Independence Pass. The turnaround will be located right before the winter closure gate on Highway 82. It’s part of a two-pronged approach aimed at preventing semi trucks and other vehicles longer than 35 feet from going over the narrow stretch. The Colorado Department of Transportation, or CDOT, will spend $200,000 to install a detection system a mile west of the turnaround

Last night, Aspen City Council approved an ordinance to fine heavy duty diesel vehicles that emit too much smoke. The new law localizes a state-wide regulation that requires diesel vehicles to keep emissions below 40 percent opacity, which is the measure of the particulate in smoke from trucks. Trucks are periodically stopped and tested; six of the 33 trucks at a test conducted earlier this summer failed.

Pitkin County Open Space and Trails has opened a new world for mountain bikers at Sky Mountain Park since 2012, but some are saying it’s destroying a key habitat for area wildlife. Aspen Public Radio’s Elizabeth Stewart-Severy checked out the newest trail in the network to see how the program balances ecological concerns with growing demand for recreation.

Not surprisingly, reaction to the first U.S. presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton largely depends on party affiliation.

Transportation engineers are planning to significantly alter Highway 82 so that semi trucks and other over-sized vehicles cannot physically travel up Independence Pass. Increased fines and road warnings to large truck drivers haven’t stopped them from heading over the pass. So, the latest proposal involves creating such a tight turning radius before the closure gate that over-length vehicles wouldn’t be able to go through. Instead, they would be directed to a new truck turnaround designed for

Colorado is among a handful of states where voters will decide if the minimum wage should be increased. If approved, Colorado’s wage would go up each year until it reaches $12 an hour by 2020.

The legal bills are mounting in the town of Basalt after a tumultuous year for the municipality.

After 40 years working for the U.S. Forest Service, Martha Moran is retiring. Aspen Public Radio’s Elizabeth Stewart-Severy spent a day at Maroon Lake last week with the recreation planner and has this profile.