By now, you’ve probably read the coverage regarding last night’s decision by the RTD Board to accept most of the staff proposed transit service cuts.  If not, you can catch two of the stories here: Daily Camera:  RTD holds firm on bus route cuts in Boulder County; and, Denver Post: RTD board approves transit cuts [...]

RTD is in the midst of wrestling with budget challenges that are forcing the agency to consider a proposed $12 million in bus and rail service cuts.  The initial menu of cuts that staff presented attempts to eliminate low performing routes and run periods while considering a variety of other factors, such as regional equity.  The full staff [...]

As the RTD Board approaches its preliminary decision regarding a potential ballot initiative to increase the FasTracks tax, we are beginning to receive feedback from some of our local public officials and editorial writers. This Monday, Sean Maher wrote an excellent piece in the Daily Camera, “FasTracks needs more fuel“.  While Sean wants to make [...]

As expected, RTD staff offered their proposal at the end of last month for speeding completion of the FasTracks program.  The full staff presentation is available here:  Annual Program Evaluation ( I addressed some of this material in a previous post).   In summary, their initial recommendation is a modest increase in the FasTracks sales tax of 0.2%.  With public support [...]

I have received great input from a number of local citizens regarding the two significant FasTracks decisions the RTD Board will be making in the near future associated with the distribution of remaining FasTracks dollars and whether to pursue additional sales tax funding.  I thank you for this continued input and, in the words of former [...]

For quite some time, RTD has suffered from lagging sales and use tax revenue that has forced the agency to make significant reductions in its operating budget, including painful service cuts.  In total, RTD’s base annual bus service hours have dropped about five percent since 2008, from a high of 2,823,000 to the current level of 2,682,000 hours.  [...]

As I stated in my recent newsletter, I need your input on two important decisions associated with the FasTracks program that the RTD Board will confront at the beginning of 2011. First, the Board needs to allocate an anticipated $305 million in remaining funds from the innovative public-private financing, construction and operations arrangement for the two [...]

A few weeks ago, addressing my Board colleagues, I noted it was highly unlikely I could support asking the voters in November of 2010 for additional tax support to complete the FasTracks program.  This was against my initial inclination, as I would prefer to get an early read from the public regarding their willingness to invest the [...]

The picture isn’t any brighter, but at least our challenge is much more clear . . .  That is the best you can probably say about the 2010 Annual Program Evaluation (APE).  This document, which RTD prepares annually for the Denver Regional Council of Governments, provides the most recent snapshot of the financial picture and technical [...]

I am typically pretty focused in my transit advocacy, as an RTD Board Director, on influencing RTD policy.   However, when the actions of outside agencies threaten our transit goals, I feel it is my duty to speak-out.  Such is the case with respect to current maneuvers to complete the Denver metro beltway. Specifically, proponents of the beltway are asking the Denver Regional Council of [...]