Boulder
Canyon Drive (Colorado Highway 119) borders the Planning Area on the north,
connecting Boulder to Nederland. Highway 119 continues along the west boundary
of the Planning Area as the Peak-to-Peak Highway, connecting Nederland to Rollinsville.
Coal Creek Canyon Drive (Colorado Highway 72) is on the south boundary of the
Planning Area, connecting northern Jefferson County and Metropolitan Denver
to the Peak-to-Peak Highway. These highways are classified as minor arterials.
The chief transportation corridor through the Magnolia neighborhood is Magnolia
Road (County Road 132), a 12-mile-long road which connects Boulder Canyon Drive
(State Highway 119) to the Peak-to-Peak Highway just south of Nederland. BCDOT
has classified Magnolia Road as a residential collector. All other County Roads
in the Planning Area are classified as local access. Locations of many of these
roads are displayed in Map 1. Definitions of the road classifications are found
in Appendix 9.2
For the first 4.7 miles up from Boulder Canyon Drive, Magnolia Road is a narrow, paved road with unusually steep stretches and numerous tight switchbacks, as it ascends the south rim of Boulder Canyon (Figure 9.1). This section of the road was originally a one-lane route used by horse-drawn mine and ranch freight. No substantial improvements were made on the road between 1865 and 1950 (PUMA, 1998). After this time the road was widened to two lanes, switchbacks were constructed to lessen the steepest grades, and guard rails were installed in certain dangerous locations. After reaching Twin Sisters Ranch, Magnolia Road is an unpaved road; it is fairly level but has numerous curves for the remainder of its length.
Primary access to Magnolia Road is from Boulder Canyon Drive. It is the third most heavily traveled side road on Boulder Canyon Drive between Boulder and Nederland (after Sugarloaf Rd. and Fourmile Canyon Dr.) with about 800 ADT (average daily traffic) at the intersection. Secondary access to Magnolia Road is from the Peak-to-Peak Highway (primarily involving traffic to and from Nederland, but also south towards Blackhawk and Interstate 70) with approximately half the daily traffic volume of the Boulder Canyon terminus.
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Figure 9.2 Magnolia Road levels
out near Twin Sister's Ranch.
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About 300 ADT access Magnolia Road from Coal Creek Canyon Drive via the steep, very narrow and unpaved County Road 97. Coal Creek Canyon Drive provides a direct route to Denver from the Planning Area, comparable in travel-time and distance with routes through City of Boulder. County Road 97 and Magnolia Road also provide the shortest distance, but not necessarily the best route, to Boulder from parts of north-central Gilpin County (e.g. from Blackhawk via Gilpin County Road 11 along South Beaver Creek) and from the sparsely populated area near Pinecliffe along State Route 72 west of Wondervu.
Other local access County Roads in the neighborhood (branching off Magnolia Road) are County Road 68, Pine Glade Road, and shorter roads in that region; also Lazy Z Road (County Road 97E). These roads are maintained and plowed by BCDOT for school buses and other public purposes. These County Roads provide access to residences as well as to trailheads in the adjacent National Forest. There is also a primitive route east to Flagstaff Road and Gross Dam Road (County Road 77) via County Road 68J (discussed in Section 7, Recreation).
Currently the County maintains and plows County roads while local residents take care of private roads in the area. Plowing, which facilitates school buses and access by emergency vehicles, is done on a priority basis with Magnolia Road receiving Priority 1 (equivalent to Boulder Canyon Drive) and roads like Lazy Z lower priority (Priority 3). See Appendix 9.5 for more information on County road maintenance
Public transportation service to the Planning Area is limited. However, Park-and-Ride lots connecting with RTD bus service exist in Wondervu and Nederland, each 6 to 10 miles away from most subdivisions in MEPP. In addition, parking for commuters who might wish to carpool or connect with bus service exists near Magnolia Road's intersection with Boulder Canyon Drive, and in Nederland.
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