Aspen-Pitkin County Airport parking full ahead of Thanksgiving

The Aspen-Pitkin County Airport parking lots are full ahead of Thanksgiving on Thursday.

The airport “parking lots are at capacity due to the holidays as many in our local community travel during this time,” a Pitkin Community Airport Alert stated on Monday.

Airport staff recommend finding alternative transportation to the airport, such as having someone drop you off, using Roaring Fork Transportation Authority buses, or scheduling a taxi.

---

---

Since the airport reopened on May 19, 2024, after runway repairs, there has only been one time the parking lot dipped below 100% occupancy, Airport Advisory Board members said last week.

“If you lose your (parking) ticket the maximum fine is $75. You could leave your car in that parking lot for three months and pay $75,” said AAB board member Andrew Doremus. “There’s cars out there that have covers on them. Obviously they’re not there for four or five days. They’re there for weeks, months.”

---

---

Airport Director Dan Bartholomew said the airport went through a request for quote, or RFQ, process for parking management. They are currently establishing a contract with a new vendor.

“We’re hoping this provider can offer some out-of-the-box thinking,” he said. “Perhaps some new ways of doing things.”

September and October were record months for passenger numbers, with September 2024 exceeding September 2023 by 13%, and October 2024 exceeding October 2023 by 35%. 

In September 2024, the airport saw 53,577 passengers compared to September 2023 when the airport saw 47,244.

In October 2024, the airport saw 44,890 passengers compared to October 2023 when the airport saw 33,229.

The two months with the most significant year over year growth for 2024 are April and October.

“That actually caught me by surprise,” said Fly Aspen Snowmass consultant Bill Tomcich. “I knew we had a huge capacity increase year over year because Delta’s flying year-round from both Atlanta and Los Angeles. United added some additional capacity, so they continued running up to eight flights a day from Denver, but also they are continuing to operate both Los Angeles and Houston throughout the fall.”

“So, we actually have both United and Delta competing with one flight a day each to LAX throughout October and November.”

Tomicich expects the numbers will be softer in November. The airport, however, is currently running about 14 flights a day, which is more capacity than the airport has ever had with all three carriers: United, Delta, and American.

For parking, Tomcich said “there are a lot more local people flying out of the Aspen airport as you can clearly see by these numbers.”

Passenger numbers are now pacing more than 15% ahead of last year. In 2023, the airport totaled 627,919 passengers for the entire year. Through October 2024, the airport has totaled 616,318 passengers already for 2024.

Regan Mertz can be reached at 970-429-9153 or rmertz@aspentimes.com.