In December, passengers on the inaugural Snowstang to the Arapahoe Basin ski area spent around five hours getting to the slopes and even longer returning to Denver. During the Martin Luther King holiday weekend, drivers reported trips upwards of six hours from Denver to Silverthorne. Our governor, Jared Polis, reported a six-hour return trip from Vail on a Sunday evening last year.
Every weekend, there is another traffic meltdown on the Interstate 70 corridor to the mountains. There is frustration, road rage, defeat, and at times calls from the Colorado Department of Transportation to avoid that road altogether. Regardless of whether or not you make regular trips to mountain destinations, our economy and quality of life hinge on those trips. Something’s gotta give.
There is tourism and all of its economic impacts. The I-70 corridor is a vital economic lifeline for the state. Tourism supports more than 174,000 jobs in Colorado, according to Visit Denver’s 2018 statistics. Because of the $1.4 billion in state and local taxes paid annually by visitors, every Colorado households save hundreds of dollars annually in taxes. The outdoors, recreation, and enjoyment of the mountains are chief among the reasons to move and stay here.
The reality is that we have outgrown that highway. At the time it was planned and built in the 50s and 60s, the anticipated population growth was 3 million statewide by the 1980s. We have doubled that, and we continue to grow at a rate of 7% per year. The Colorado Department of Transportation estimates that westbound I-70 travel times will triple by 2035; eastbound drivers should expect their commutes to quadruple. It’s bleak and something’s gotta give.
The temptation is to widen the road, yet history proves that single-mode, single-path transportation — cars, buses, shared rides or even driverless vehicles all relying on the same highway — is unsustainable and impractical. All of our eggs are in one basket, a few-lane basket that traps all drivers and passengers whether they ride in the Snowstang or a single-occupancy SUV.
Rail is a proven, cost-effective alternative that moves a high volume of people in a reliable way over significant distances. The most advanced transportation systems in the world focus on modern rail as the most effective, environmentally responsible way to move people at scale. China has added 20,000 miles of high-speed rail (to 500 in the U.S.) while Germany recently committed $70 billion to modernize its rail system to combat climate change.
It is tempting to throw our hands up in the air and say we cannot do that mostly because the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) passed in 1992. TABOR paralyzes government spending on infrastructure. It is also tempting to say that voters have rejected the last three ballot measures that addressed transportation. But we cannot afford to do that. Coloradans don’t like blank checks to an agency like CDOT, and they were never asked to invest in a train to the mountains. It may be time we ask the specific question, and it may need to be focused on only some of the taxpaying population of the state that will more directly benefit from such a project. A success story is Fastracks, a transit specific ballot initiative that was overwhelmingly approved by the voters in 2004.
The good news for a project like that is that we don’t need to start from scratch. The train line to Winter Park provides a great jumping-off point. The most expensive section of track under the continental divide is already in place and the opportunity is there to build a line to Silverthorne with potential additional spurs to other mountain towns.
The train to Winter Park sold a record 19,200 tickets last season. Service expanded this year. Amtrak’s double-decker express takes snow enthusiasts from Union Station to Winter Park in two hours, dashing through 31 tunnels over 66 miles of tracks. Those arriving at Denver International Airport can take the 37-minute A Line rail service to Union Station for $10.50. This is currently the only situation in North America where you can fly into an airport and take rail all the way to the slopes.
An added opportunity of this existing train is to quickly relieve traffic by improving the existing train and increasing service. Each train carries more than 500 passengers. Currently, service operates between January 10 through March 29 with one departure each way per day, on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Investing in modern features, from internet, usb and power outlets, dining and bar cars, and offering more options on timing will be money well-spent in the effort to take more cars off the road between Morrison and Empire on I-70. Subsidizing part of the cost of the tickets to keep it accessible to all, will further incentivize ditching one’s car.
The train does not replace the current bus service. The Snowstang is a welcome addition to the limited options, but its impact is minimal. The 51-seat buses to Loveland and A-Basin have been running 49% full, with the bus to Steamboat running 30% full, according to CDOT. Only 40% of costs are covered through rider fares, the rest being subsidized by the ski areas involved, a move that should be replicated to some extent for a train service.
The difference between trains and buses+ is reliability, the potential for frequency, along with significantly more capacity to actually make an appreciable impact on traffic counts.
Broader benefits of a train are not to be overlooked: fewer cars lead to better air quality at a time when clean air is a major priority for our state. Fewer cars will also be a relief for small mountain towns currently overrun with them, crippled by the traffic and parking shortages they create. Unlike a road expansion, building a train will not place additional pressures on traffic and the surrounding communities as a result of construction crews.
Technology hounds drool over big shiny ideas like the Hyperloop. That is not a solution for our I-70 woes. The concept is not as revolutionary as originally presented, not proven, and not designed to move significant numbers of passengers but rather as a side-kick project to Tesla automobiles. Pursuing partnerships with operators who have an interest in investing in infrastructure can be one answer to our funding gaps. One such operator is Virgin and its project in Florida is an example. As service takes off from Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and beyond, Florida will likely have the fastest rail travel in the United States. We could too.
During the State of the State address earlier this month, Gov. Jared Polis aptly described our charge as Coloradans: “By investing in our infrastructure and providing more affordable and convenient transportation options, we can relieve traffic congestion, reduce harmful emissions that blacken our skies, and also boost our entire economy.” A train to the mountains fits the bill. Let’s encourage, empower, and support our leaders to get it done.
Whenever Denver is pitched to companies looking to relocate, its transit system is cited as a major selling factor.
“Metro Denver is a model for the country when it comes to solving transportation challenges, taking steps to reduce sprawl, and create new neighborhoods along transit,” touts the Metro Denver Economic Development Commission’s website.
Proximity to transit has influenced tech companies, professional offices and even major headquarters that are flocking to Lower Downtown, the Central Business District and the Denver Tech Center.
Development projects tied to transit have popped up across the metro, as clusters of office, retail and residential projects — think South Broadway, River North, Lone Tree and Pena Station Next — seek the convenience of rail access. The Regional Transportation District’s free shuttle along the 16th Street Mall moves thousands of tourists, shoppers and workers daily, as does the free MetroRide, which operates during peak commute hours.
Yet despite its important role in the economic growth of the region, RTD has been plagued with budget problems and staffing challenges arising out of high driver turnover. These headaches have resulted in numerous delays and no-shows, causing inconvenience and annoyance to riders. Employers may have noticed employees arriving to work later, sharing water-cooler grumbles about crowds at bus and train stops, and dealing with parking challenges as their vehicles once again become more attractive than standing at a freezing transit station.
On Dec. 12, the transit agency will announce “temporary” service cutbacks in an attempt to reduce driver overtime and bring more certainty to the routes that remain in place. Whatever cuts are made, RTD’s current condition should provide a wake-up call to the business community on multiple fronts:
- Frustrating commutes can jeopardize workplace culture, work-life balance and employee retention. Unpredictable travel times and the resulting irregular work schedules can also impact productivity — and eventually revenue.
- Developers should be concerned about marketing their multimillion-dollar, transit-oriented projects if routes are cut back or canceled. And this trickles down to related retail, residential and office tenants looking at these new projects.
- A decrease in transit volume means an increase in vehicular traffic, leading to even more congestion within an already-burdened infrastructure — not to mention the increased environmental impact.
- Finally, every business in the metro should be concerned about the long-term effects that RTD’s instability could have on overall growth of the region.
So what can businesses do? Listen to employees and learn how RTD’s cutbacks are impacting them. Consider flexible work schedules to accommodate shifting commute times. Speak out about route cutbacks and the importance of transit to business as RTD continues to develop a plan for greater efficiencies.
And here’s a radical suggestion: Don’t stop using RTD. Encourage employees to keep using it. If you aren’t already offering EcoPass perks to staff, consider adding them. As Ed Sealover’s recent in-depth story noted, RTD ridership has declined continuously for five years, falling from 103.4 million passengers in the 12 months that began in December 2014 to 97.6 million in 2018. Through September 2019, year-to-date ridership is down another 0.7% throughout the system and 3.7% specifically on its eight light-rail lines.
As important as a healthy, well-run transit system is to Denver, we can’t afford to see such a valuable asset diminished. The business community has a strong collective voice; now’s the time to use it.
Meanwhile, I hope to see you on the bus.
One month after its inception, a winter bus service to Steamboat Springs and other mountain towns is gaining ridership and receiving positive feedback from passengers.
Snowstang, which provides round-trip rides on weekends to Steamboat Resort, Arapahoe Basin and Loveland, builds on the success of the Colorado Department of Transportation’s regional Bustang system.
Officials have touted the winter service as a convenient travel option that also reduces traffic and greenhouse emissions from vehicles.
Some rides have not come without complications, which is nothing new to winter travel in Colorado. The inaugural Snowstang bus to Arapahoe Basin, for instance, got stuck for almost 30 minutes trying to turn around amid a heavy winter storm. A crash along the return route also delayed the bus for several hours, but all passengers returned to Denver safely.
While ridership to Steamboat has surpassed expectations, it remains the route with the least number of passengers, according to data from CDOT. As of Thursday, Jan. 16, 153 one-way tickets had been booked for the Steamboat route. Comparatively, 384 tickets had been booked for the Arapahoe Basin route and 482 tickets had been booked for trips to Loveland.
Michael Timlin, bus operations manager for CDOT, attributed the lower numbers along the Steamboat route to the longer length of the trip and the fact that it leaves on Saturday and returns on Sunday. Rides to the other two resorts leave on Saturday and return to Denver the same day.
Fares to Steamboat are $20 one-way with discounts available for children, people with disabilities and people ages 65 and older. Each bus holds 51 passengers and is equipped with Wi-Fi access, a restroom and USB and power outlets.
On average, buses to Steamboat have been more than 30% full, according to Timlin. Officials had set a goal of 20% capacity for rides to and from Steamboat.
“We knew it would take some time to grow,” Timlin said, adding he was pleased with the popularity of the service thus far.
He added that about 20 residents in and around Steamboat have used a Snowstang bus to travel to the Front Range on Sunday, an added benefit to the service’s primary purpose of getting residents to ski resorts.
Timlin said feedback on the rides has been generally positive, based his conversations with passengers and from surveys that CDOT has collected.
One such satisfied rider is Denver resident Sarah Mielke, who took a Snowstang bus to Steamboat in December to visit her daughter. She listed multiple advantages to using the service, such as its convenience and the relatively low cost.
“Because of the price as well as the easy ride, I was able to take my daughter for both food and shopping at our local favorite businesses,” Mielke said.
She also prefers to take public transportation, because it is more environmentally friendly than using her own vehicle. While her ride had a few delays due to traffic, Mielke described the bus as clean, spacious and quiet.
“I hope in the future people will utilize it more so it can expand,” she said.
Jim Schneider, vice president of skier services with Steamboat Ski & Resort Corp., said Snowstang has been a great sustainable addition for transportation options to Steamboat.
So far, the buses have saved 1,868 pounds of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere through private vehicles, according Timlin.
The city and the resort each are paying 30% of the total cost of Snowstang rides to Steamboat, with CDOT covering the remaining 40%. According to City Manager Gary Suiter, the city and resort have contributed $15,752 thus far, and CDOT has paid just over $21,000.
Buses leave Denver on Saturdays from Union Station and the Federal Center Station, then stop in Steamboat at the Gondola Transit Center and the Stockbridge Transit Center. The bus returns to Denver on Sundays along the same stops.
Timlin said that if Snowstang is a success this year, CDOT will continue the service next winter, perhaps with additional routes to more resorts.
To book a ride on the Snowstang, visit ridebustang.com or download the Bustang mobile app, JustRide Bustang.
Following a sluggish start, Denver is switching its bicycle program into high gear to help keep its promise of installing 125 miles of bike lanes by 2023.
Mayor Michael Hancock on Thursday announced the new three-pronged approach, alongside Denver Transportation and Infrastructure Director Eulois Cleckley.
The accelerated plan will coordinate striping bike lanes when streets are paved; install “high comfort” lanes that include physical barriers to separate cyclists from cars; and “significantly” expand the bike network in the city’s most densely populated areas, like northwest and central Denver, to increase the number of households within a quarter-mile of a high comfort bikeway.
Hancock on Thursday said that the “reality is we’re ushering in the bicycle revolution in Denver, Colorado,” Denverite reported. “I grew up in the city. We didn’t have bike lanes. We rode our little Huffys without bike lanes, protected or striped. And today we get a chance to see a city committing to creating comfort lanes for people to ride their bikes.”
Some critics aren’t sure a “revolution” is best for the city.
“I have no idea why they’re taking this extreme route,” said Sara Almerri, the public affairs director for the Freedom to Drive Coalition. “Denver is not creating new bike lanes. They’re taking them out of driving lanes.”
Although some people would like to walk or bike to work, she said, most residents cannot do so because the city is sprawling, making cost-efficient and timely transit more difficult.
“It’s highly irresponsible and detrimental to the city’s economic vitality, national reputation and quality of life if the city insists on adding bike lanes at the expense of motorists,” she said.
Roughly 2% of Denverites are bicycle commuters, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data.
The program was first announced in 2018 and went into effect last year. So far, the city has only created 12.5 miles, or 10%, of its planned bike lanes, according to DOTI spokeswoman Heather Burke-Bellile.
“Denver experienced an early winter last year, so installation schedules got pushed back on some of our 2019 bikeway projects,” she said.
This year, the city anticipates installing about 36 more miles and is currently finalizing the mileage for subsequent years. Burke-Bellile said, by this summer, the city will have “a clearer picture” for next year.
Denver will still need to complete more than 60% of its bikeway project in two years if all goes according to the city’s plan.
The new bikeways will be partly funded by $18 million in voter-approved bonds, as well as through the Denver’s capital improvement program.
The bike plan is intended to align with the Vision Zero Action Plan, Hancock’s five-year initiative to end traffic-related deaths and injuries by 2030.
“Through better processes and collaboration, improved street design, safe speeds, a culture of safety, and improved data and transparency, we will save lives,” the mayor wrote in 2017.
More than 70 people died on Denver’s roadways last year, the most fatalities on the city’s streets in nearly 20 years.
Some critics are skeptical the city’s bikeway commitment will help lower those numbers — or be honored at all.
“This makes good press,” said Brad Evans, founder and leader of Denver Cruiser Ride, an organized bike-riding group, “but it does little to create a connected and protected network for bicycle users.”
Location: Douglas County Government building (100 S 3rd Street, Castle Rock)
- Intros & Updates (19 attended)
- Empower Health Partners (Natalie)
- Her business provides resources and services
- Bob Epstein
- Legislation that could affect transportation
- Senate Bill 2044 – Targeting transportation funding
- Senate Bill 70 – Dealing with traffic offenses and paying them
- House Bill 1151 – Regional transportation funds
- Rand
- Next Thursday – 4-6pm – Strive to Thrive resource fair
- Transportation dashboard
- Great 2019 date of ridership and funding
- Flyer posted in LCC book
- Doug Tisdale
- RTD spiel – same as last meeting
- Faye
- New grant year
- Services will continue until grants are signed
- It’s also an application year for Douglas LCC partners & providers
- New grant year
- Great 2019 date of ridership and funding
- Legislation that could affect transportation
- Empower Health Partners (Natalie)
Tom & Steve – Castle Rock Feasibility Study
- Early stages
- Public input session extended a month
- Community meetings scheduled
- Scope:
- Community Engagement
- Identify town needs
- Develop & analyze transit models
- Cost analysis
- Identify funding sources
- Questions:
- What does short term & long term transit in Castle Rock look like?
- Senior Center services – right now people need to schedule several days in advance
- This is working, but it could be much better
- Doesn’t allow for quality of like trips like getting ice cream on a hot July day
- When it is same day requests they are currently referring them to taxi services
- More same day services options would be nice
- Even moving to a 1 day in advance would change a lot
- SAME DAY SERVICE OPTIONS WOULD BE HUGE!
- RidgeGate Parkway is getting more usage
- Need more services that get people to and from that park n’ ride
- Later hours of operation
- Costly but needed
- What groups are important to serve?
- Aging population
- ADA
- Human Services
- Probation and court dates
- Human services open 8-5 but jail releases people as late as 11pm
- Minors
- After school activities or first jobs
- Transit types?
- On demand – flex service – same day
- Circulator is too limited
- Partner with other towns
- Castle Rock to Lone Tree, etc.
- Gaps?
- Young population w/ ADA
- Encouraged to get out and be part of the community or get their first job
- Then left with no way of getting there reliably
- Larger service area and extended hours of operation
- NOTE: Whatever the county decides needs to be cost affective for the county BUT also for the residents
- People of low income need these services too
- What does the future look like?
- Transportation hub(s) to connect services
- Encouraged to get out and be part of the community or get their first job
- Young population w/ ADA
- On demand – flex service – same day
- Probation and court dates
- This is working, but it could be much better
- Senior Center services – right now people need to schedule several days in advance
- What does short term & long term transit in Castle Rock look like?
- Next meeting – 2/27/20
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