My one-hour, 45-minute drive home yesterday afternoon couldn't compare to the nightmare commutes experienced by many other Denverites. I know because I spent most of my time in traffic listening to KOA/850-AM, which wisely dumped its regular programming (sorry, Rush) to concentrate on the storm. Cory Lopez helmed the broadcast, taking calls from a slew of correspondents, including Jerry Bell, Steffan Tubbs, Gloria Neal and even Jayson Luber, the outlet's former helicopter jockey, who now handles traffic reports for Channel 7. Once upon a time, plenty of radio stations in town could have mobilized resources like this. Now, it's pretty much KOA -- and thank goodness the outlet hasn't dumped the format yet.
A gripe, though (and you knew one had to be coming). I use C-470 along the foothills to reach my home in the Ken-Caryl Ranch area, but the transition ramp from Sixth Avenue to I-70 that gets me there was closed, creating a miles-long backup that accounted for about half my time behind the wheel yesterday -- and not once before and during my long, long wait did anyone on the station mention it. Why a steady diet of reports from I-25, the Boulder Turnpike, Hampden, etc., but no C-470? Hell if I know, but it's a pattern I've noticed since moving to the neighborhood in the early '90s. If I had been given a heads-up, I could have bailed at Simms and worked my way to the highway from Alameda Parkway, which I eventually did after clearing the jam, finding C-470 to be practically deserted due to the closure. Instead, I got to hear a lot more of KOA's coverage, which was mighty good overall -- with the exception of a notable (to me) blind spot.
