Neighbors unhappy about mud from rain, snow on Glider Loop in El Paso County

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) — Snow that fell overnight Tuesday may create more of a muddy mess on Glider Loop that neighbors said they've dealt with since last fall.

Around a dozen homes are along the mile-long, circular, unpaved road that connects to Vollmer Road, just south of Black Forest.

Neighbors contacted KRDO 13's The Road Warrior about the situation, saying that mud was never a problem until after a September rain.

"The road became slicker than snot," said David Zoller, a neighbor. "Every time we park our cars in the front yard by means of mud on the tires, it just makes a mess of everything. We have to drive extremely slow around the loop. Mud spitting up, going down Vollmer road for half a mile after we get off the loop."

Zoller said that after every rain or snow event, county crews have quickly responded by placing fresh dirt on the road and smoothing it out — as they were doing on Tuesday — which creates driving challenges for residents, mail carriers, and delivery drivers.

But the mud problem persists.

Zoller said that a county official explained what may be causing the issue.

"My opinion is they went to a more clay-based road base instead of a sand base that they used to use for year after year after year," he explained. "And sand, of course, moisture drains through it. Clay, once it gets wet, it turns muddy. And that's kind of the issue that we're facing here."

With the latest snowfall and more moisture expected through the weekend, crews likely will return and do more work on Glider, if necessary.

Zoller said that he and some neighbors would like the road paved with asphalt but were told by the county that it doesn't have enough traffic to justify the expense.