With mandate for ‘more boots and bikes and less cars,’ town of Breckenridge launches e-bike program aimed at residents

75 bikes will be deployed throughout the town to encourage car-free, one-way travel between neighborhoods, businesses and points of interest

By Robert Tann
[email protected]

An electric bike that is part of the town of Breckenridge’s new program aimed at reducing traffic and emissions is pictured with the Tenmile Range and Breckenridge Ski Area behind it. The program allows riders to take 30-minute trips for $3 before incurring per-minute charges.
Teddy Wilkinson/Town of Breckenridge

In a bid to reduce emissions, curb congestion and expand public transit, the town of Breckenridge is preparing to launch an electric bike sharing program that will run through the summer and into fall.

Beginning on Saturday, May 20, the town will deploy 75 bikes housed in more than a dozen stations. Bike sessions will only begin and end at each station, a way to encourage short, one-way trips that may otherwise be done with a car.

The program will be particularly geared towards locals, with a bike station within a quarter-mile of 14 different workforce housing neighborhoods and developments, according to Breckenridge Sustainability and Alternate Transportation Administrator Teddy Wilkinson.

“In addition to just having hubs where people live, we want to have them where people want to go,” Wilkinson said, adding that stations will also be near the Breckenridge Recreation Center, the Summit County Library South Branch, River Park and City Market.

Bikes will cost $3 to unlock for 30 minutes. Anything over 30 minutes will cost an additional 50 cents per minute. Breckenridge residents will also be eligible for a membership that costs $15 per month or $50 for the entire e-bike season, which lasts until Oct. 31. Those respective costs are currently $10 and $40 for residents who buy before June 18.

Wilkinson said the program is not intended to replace the need for bike rentals, adding that locals and visitors will still have plenty of reasons to take advantage of the town’s many rental stores for longer day trips across the county.

“The pricing is structured so that to use the e-bike share for a half-day rental would be more than double the rate of a bike shop,” Wilkinson said.

The e-bike program, instead, will offer an affordable, car-free alternative for residents making a quick trip to the grocery store, for example.

A study by the Federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics showed that 52% of all trips in the United States in 2021 for all modes of transit were less than 3 miles. In Breckenridge, officials said the more those trips can be taken without a car, the better the town’s overall community will be.

Climate and sustainability has been a major focus for town officials who have rolled out a flurry of policies and programs in recent years. Those include incentives to shift more residents to recycling and subsidies for home electrification projects in partnership with the High Country Conservation Center.

And reducing carbon emissions from vehicles is another key prong in the fight for a cleaner environment, officials said.

“With environmental goals, there’s not one silver bullet to fix it,” said Council member Todd Rankin. “I think all of these incremental, small things hopefully add up to a bigger success story.”

Council member Jay Beckerman said the town council has set a mandate for “more boots and bikes and less cars.”

“Having our residents get out of their car just one day a week, to change their habits just one day a week, can make a huge difference,” Beckerman said.

Outside of its benefits to the environment, biking also provides residents and visitors a better way to experience Breckenridge, he said. Whether it’s exploring the riverwalk corridor or musing at public art.

“I think that you can view the assets of our town’s core better on foot or on bike than in an automobile,” Beckerman said.

While this year’s program is a pilot, town officials said they hope to continue and even expand it into the future, should it prove successful.

The town contracted with Drop Mobility, which provided the bikes for the program, to the tune of $243,000. Half of that cost was supported by a grant from the Colorado Department of Transportation, according to Wilkinson.

And with clean energy funding made available through two new federal laws, the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, more money may be coming down the pike for such programs, Wilkinson said.

Compared with the cost for a single diesel bus, which Wilkinson said can be as much as $500,000, the e-bike program is “a very economical way to deploy public transportation and provide a way for the public to get around,” he said.

Residents and visitors looking to use a bike will need to download the Breck E-Ride app, which will allow them to pay for their ride, look at a map of docking stations and show if bikes are available at any given time.

More information on the app can be found online at BreckERide.com

Here is what you need to know:

We have been getting many calls from our clients in Breckenridge, and all of Summit County for that matter, so we have prepared a quick summary.

Hi All,

Here is the latest information on short term rentals [as of April 10th, 2023]. As you know this issue has been very fluid, shall we say, but this is the information you need right now to figure out what your needs are when purchasing a property.

• Is it investment, short term or long term?
• Is it mostly for family?
• Do you use it in the summer and want to rent it during ski season to get those big rentals?
What are the ramifications of these permits that are needed when you go to sell your property as it will have an impact on the buyer that is considering this purchase. Also, another thing to consider when purchasing your property is the cost of the permit itself as they are not transferable when sale occurs. This sounds overwhelming but that is where we come in as your Breckenridge realtors. Roger and I (The Moens) have been here for 26 years and our job is to help you navigate these issues with ease and help you to understand what exactly you are purchasing and the long term affects as well. Breckenridge real estate is so fun to own and we can help you with the dream, however we want you to go into it educated and have confidence about your purchase.

There is an online map available, showing the locations of all of the various zones: resort, and zones 1, 2 and 3. Contact us for details. 970.376.2038

The number of homes sold in Summit County is continuing to decrease each month but home prices are remaining at a record high, according to February real estate data.

The findings come as brokers have been predicting a slight shift in the housing market, eyeing a tilt toward buyers who they say may be more empowered to negotiate home prices amid a post-COVID market boom. But sellers are still nearly reaping their full asking price.

There were 19.3% fewer sales than a year prior, but that number is about 18% better than we did last month. The median sales price is up 20.4% over the same time last year. Another federal reserve rate hike could flatten our market again, but as for now, even with this upward trend, sellers are receiving about 97% of their list price.”The average home transaction in February for both single- and multi-family housing was $1,484,891,” according to our highest average Recently released from Land Title.

Many people are holding onto their homes as they have lower interest rates and want to keep those where they are. There seems to be indicators of the market going back to normal even with the interest rates increasing. Part of this is the time of year and also people’s fears. If the interest rates hit up to 6% that is still pretty cheap money. We just all got spoiled with those super low interest rates. So demand is there to purchase, and there are still buyers out there just less to choose from. This puts the market at a more equal playing field, so to speak, as it has been a buyers market for so long since COVID-19.

According to Zillow, which is a nationwide company servicing thousands of zip codes, and is certainly computer generated, but it is useful for discussion. The best way to get a more in depth accounting of the market you really need to talk to a local Breckenridge realtor which would be Roger and Teresa Moen of course. We have seen a sluggish market in the last quarter of 2022. The true test will be to see what happens in this first quarter of 2023.

A couple of things are showing themselves to be promising. One is our sales are almost where they were last year at this time. I have also been seeing interest rates going down again. I have even seen some no-doc loans which I haven’t seen in years. So the chart below is projecting 2.5% value increase which is low for Breckenridge. I will keep you posted as to what is happening in the near future. If you have a particular price range of Breckenridge mountain homes or another area of Summit County let me know and I can do a more in-depth search for you. Roger and I are your friendly, local guides to all things real estate!

Here is a monthly local update based upon homes you viewed in zip code 80424.

I wanted to share some charts & graphs to help you understand the current Breckenridge market more fully.

Here’s a long-term chart showing all active residential listings (homes, condos, townhomes, duplexes, vacant land) – no commercial, no timeshare.

Note the rapid up/down seasonal fluctuation in the number of active listings – always more listings on the market in the summer, fewer in the winter.

The more important thing to notice: the better the overall state of the US economy, the fewer the listings there are. During the years 2004 – 2007, the number of listings went down as the general US economy was thriving. The number of active listings bottomed out in 2007 with only ~350 listings. Then the Great Recession hit. People still wanted to sell, but very few sales occurred, so the inventory skyrocketed to over 1,200 listings in Summer 2009 and again in Summer 2010.

As we recovered from the Great Recession, the inventory decreased pretty steadily, from 2011 through 2020, and then by late 2020 the “COVID FEVER BUYING FRENZY” was in full swing, and the inventory plummeted to just ~60 listings, in Spring 2021 and again in Spring 2022.

Zooming in on the last few years…

This chart is a close-up of just the past few years. Note that inventory plummeted in late 2020 and early 2021 as COVID-fueled buying fever prevailed. Then, starting in Summer 2022, the market cooled a bit and inventory rose.. but it still peaked at around 260 listings in Fall 2022 … and now it’s dropping pretty fast again.

As of 12/15/22, there were only 165 listings on the market. That is lower than anytime prior to the onset of COVID. It’s still a seller’s market, as long as there is so little inventory. Properties are currently selling faster than new ones are coming on the market, so the number of listings is dropping.

Questions? Need answers? Roger and I are your number ONE professional choice for our knowledge, expertise and advise. We look forward to assisting you. Happy Holidays.

First, this year I’ve had more people paying cash for their second homes here in Breckenridge and surrounding areas. Remember, Breckenridge is a resort market, so interest rates are not as much of a concern here, versus areas where people are struggling to finance their first home purchase. But, the way that it is affecting our investors in Breckenridge, is that they are now figuring “cash is king” and in some cases they are right. A cash transaction can close quickly, around 3 weeks, while a transaction with a loan will typically take 6-8 weeks. A quick closing is usually appealing to a seller.

Happy Thanksgiving!