Colorado Has A New Way To Get A Speeding Ticket: Running Too Fast

Speed limits on roads have been enforced since 1901, when Connecticut set a legal limit of 12 mph in cities and 15 mph in the country. But the history of enforcing speed dates back well before the automobile. The colony of New Amsterdam, which later became New York, enforced a "no galloping" rule for wagons, carts, and sleighs beginning in 1652! Today, almost 375 years later, some towns and cities in the U.S. are enforcing speed restrictions both on and off the road.

In October 2025, the city of Durango, Colorado proposed a speed limit for the popular Animas River Trail, which is a 7.1-mile hard surface path that runs along the Animas River and into the city. It allows residents and visitors alike to visit parks, a recreation center, the library, schools, and other areas of downtown Durango without ever crossing a street, and it's accessible for walkers, runners, and cyclists, including those on traditional bikes and their faster cousin, the electric bike, or e-bike. The city council proposed the speed limit to address safety concerns about walkers or runners sharing the path with those that are moving faster on bicycles, especially e-bikes.

The Durango City Council was set to consider the proposed Animas River Trail speed limit in mid-October, and at the time of writing it was not clear if the proposal had been approved. The proposal adds a section to the town ordinance that would limit speed on the trail to 10 mph when you're sharing the trail with other people, and it would apply to e-bikes, scooters, bicycles, skateboards and, of course, people.

But can people really run that fast, or is this ordinance only taking aim at cyclists? While it's obviously meant to keep those on foot out of harm's way, people can in fact run at 10 mph and faster. If anyone, runner or cyclist under or over the age of 18, exceeds that speed when others are on the trail, they could be fined $100 plus the cost of court fees.

It's a bit murky how exactly the town plans to enforce this rule, should it be approved. The town's website says that an "officer will document the speed and the fact that multiple users were present" but doesn't clarify if officers are always present on the trail. Individuals using the trail will not have to follow other traffic rules that are used on the road, such as yielding, but the town states that "courtesy is expected" and those on the trail are expected to know if there are others nearby, so keep the earbuds at home or invest in a pair that allow you to maintain situation awareness.