Latest News & Current Happenings

Virtual Meeting via Zoom

1. Bill Sirois, RTD Senior Manager and Julie Skeen, RTD Project Team presented on Reimagine RTD:
   • COVID presents immediate operational and fiscal challenges RTD will need to face, as well as medium- and long-term difficulties. This will lead to tough choices as they invest in scarcer-than-anticipated resources.
   • RTD is continuing to seek input from the community on System Optimization Plan preferences and will use this to develop initial scenarios in the fall. Once these initial scenarios are drafted, RTD will request specific feedback on specific routes, frequencies, and types of services.
   • Bill and Julie shared answers to a variety of committee members’ questions, including updates on the status of the project as a whole, fare-setting within RTD, potential external partnerships, CARES Act funding, and targeted outreach for non-English speakers, the disabled, and the elderly.
   • Note: since our meeting, RTD has reached out to let us know the System Optimization Plan and other long-term elements of Reimagine RTD will be delayed as they bring more focus to the immediate needs in preparing for 2021

2. Piep van Heuven, Bicycle Colorado‘s Director of Government Relations, provided a State Legislative Update:
   • Three primary elements of Bicycle Colorado’s legislative agenda in the prior session, and a review of transportation-related issues in the complete 2020 session.
   • Potential shifts in the legislative landscape moving forward, as well as potential 2021 legislative targets for Bicycle Colorado.

3. Jill Locantore, Executive Director of Denver Streets Partnership, introduced their 20 is Plenty campaign:
   • “We’re calling on city leaders to reduce the default speed limit for Denver’s neighborhood streets from 25 mph to 20 mph. People should be able to safely walk dogs, play with kids in their front yard, garden in the planting strip, walk to get groceries, or bike with their kids to school on neighborhood streets.”
   • Relevant data and case studies on the benefits of reduced residential speed limits, and successful programs elsewhere.
   • How you can acquire your own yard signs and postage-paid letters to support the initiative
   • How you can share details on this campaign with your local community organizations.
   • The INC Transportation Committee attendees passed a motionwith a vote of 25 in favor, 1 opposed — the text of the motion was:
   • The INC Transportation Committee recommends to the INC Board that INC sign on to the 20 Is Plenty position, as it is consistent with INC’s adopted Transportation Platform, including:
     • 1. Denver should commit itself, at the highest levels, to the Vision Zero goals of eliminating traffic fatalities and serious injuries, learning from the emerging best practices in other cities. This is a moral issue – life and health are of paramount importance, and the transportation systems and features should lessen the impact when inevitable human errors occur. 
     • 4. Evaluate and revise lane width standards and speed limits using a detailed street typology and considering safety best practices from other cities. 
     • 5. Traffic speeds in residential neighborhoods should be lower than speeds on main arterials between neighborhoods. “Neighborhood slow zones” are a promising design/policy response to the safety effects of cut-through traffic. The City should amend its design standards to include speed humps as an option for traffic calming. 
   • Learn more about the 20 Is Plenty effort and sign up for a yard sign at http://bit.ly/20isplentydenver

4. Riley LaMie, Denver DOTI Senior City Planner, shared an overview of Denver’s New Complete Streets Guidelines, including:
   • Key themes of community feedback gathered over the last year, as well as how you can provide feedback on the latest draft.
   • Answers to myriad Committee member questions on the scope, intent, and applications of this guide.
   • A timeline for finalization of the guide, and a timeline for later phases of formal rule adjustments within civic organizations.
   • The structure of the Complete Streets Guidelines, and how they should be used in practice by engineers and planners. He highlighted many key features of interest in the guidance.

Next meeting:

Thursday, September 10th, 2020 — 6:30pm-8pm

Virtual Meeting via Zoom