The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Driver issued a citation for failure to use chains
By Cayla Vidmar
On Sunday night, March 3, a large commuter bus heading north up to Mt. Crested Butte on Gothic Road began sliding backwards, downhill just past the town sign after the last big curve heading north. The bus did not have chains on the tires when the accident occurred and ended up completely blocking the road as it settled sideways across the width of the road.
According to a passenger on the bus, Debbi Toohey, the bus was carrying 40 ski club members from the East Coast who had already experienced a long travel day full of misadventure. “We had two diverted flight attempts into Gunnison, so we had to land in Montrose and were bused over,” Toohey said.
The group stopped in Gunnison at City Market for groceries, and Toohey said the bus driver was “moaning and groaning” about it getting dark, and was concerned about road conditions. “Everything he was worried about kind of came true,” she said.
As the group eagerly approached Mt. Crested Butte, Toohey noticed a car that had gone off the side of the road, and then, as they were going up the hill past the town Welcome sign, the bus began to slide backwards.
“We had a car in front of us, and they were dragging their feet, and that probably created some issues because the driver in front of him was going so slowly,” Toohey recalls. The bus driver applied the brakes, and that’s when the bus began its “painfully slow” backward slide.
Toohey said the driver did an exceptional job at maneuvering the rear-end of the bus into the west side of the road. But the slow slide didn’t stop when the back end of the bus was crammed into the snow bank—instead, the front of the bus began to slide sideways down the hill, and eventually lodged in the snow bank on the east side of the road.
The bus blockaded the road for about two hours, according to Mt. Crested Butte police.
“It was really unnerving,” said Toohey, who praised the Mt. Crested Butte police for their quick response. “They were there probably five minutes after the driver called.”
The group had to get off the bus and walk up to the Mountain Express Pitchfork bus stop, where they were picked up by Mountain Express and taken to their destination. The group’s luggage and groceries followed not long after.
According to public information officer for the Mt. Crested Butte Police Department, Marjorie Trautman, the bus driver was issued a citation for “failing to comply with chain restriction resulting in road closure,” a penalty that carries a $695.50 fine.
“The chain sign was on, operating properly and visible to vehicles,” Trautman writes. She says they needed a “big enough wrecker” to come from Gunnison to dislodge the bus.
Overall, Toohey said, she was grateful for everyone involved, and the skiing has been great for the group so far. With a laugh, she says she hopes their trip home is less adventurous.
