CDOT's winter operations team briefed partners on the 2024–25 season, reporting a near-average number of large winter storms but a higher-than-normal number of days with measurable snow and continued reliance on avalanche mitigation systems.

Nick Barlow, CDOT meteorologist, summarized observations: “We had 28 large scale storms this winter. … Of those 28 storms, the state was being impacted by a large scale storms, 73 days through the past winter.” He added the station-average snowfall-days metric: “That was a hundred 9 this year, up quite a bit from 91 last year.”

Key operational points
- Snow and storms: CDOT counted 28 large-scale storms and 73 days when the state was impacted by large-scale storms. The station-average number of days with measurable snow reached 109 for the season.
- Snowpack and variability: Western and southwest Colorado were generally drier than average while several mountain ski areas and Pueblo had near- or above-average totals for the season, Nick said. He showed SNOTEL station rankings reflecting wide regional variability.
- Avalanche mitigation: CDOT reported more than 500 natural and triggered avalanches in highway paths and over 100 highway-avalanche mitigation missions. The agency used a mix of mitigation tools; remote gas exploder rack systems accounted for a growing share of detonations and help reduce dependence on artillery cooldown operations.
- Costs and closures: CDOT reported multi-year averages of avalanche program costs (roughly $790,000 average annually over the past five years) and that individual mitigation missions with cleanup averaged about 79 hours of closure time on routes where mitigation and cleanup were required.

What CDOT is changing and tracking
CDOT said it is increasing meteorologist support and continuing training and equipment refreshes for avalanche mitigation. The department also emphasized near-term drought and fire risk for parts of western Colorado heading into summer and said it is providing summer convective and heat-risk forecasts aimed at maintenance crews.

Ending: CDOT's winter operations presentation combined weather analysis with operational metrics and cost estimates; agency staff said they will continue post-season reviews and training to refine mitigation, forecasting and resource allocation for future winters.