An Expanded Lyons Shuttle Returns

The free Boulder-Lyons shuttle started this weekend and will run until August 31. It runs Friday evening through Sunday evening. It runs from the downtown Boulder Transit Center to a loop through downtown Lyons along US 36. The bus serves at least one trailhead, for Lakeridge Trail. Click here for a schedule and map (PDF).

This bus is free for all, but all buses can be free for Lyons residents. If you live in Lyons, call the City of Lyons at 303-823-6622 to find out how to get an RTD EcoPass which is a free pass for all RTD buses and light rail.

Public Open Houses about Rail along the Front Range

Wednesday, May 29 at 5-7:30 pm
PPACG
15 South Seventh Street
Colorado Springs

Thursday, May 30 at 5-7:30 pm
Pueblo Convention Center
320 Central Main Street
Pueblo

Wednesday, June 5 at 5-7:30 pm
Windsor Recreation Center
250 North 11th Street
Windsor

Thursday, June 6 at 5-7:30 pm
CDOT Headquarters Auditorium
4201 E. Arkansas Avenue
Denver

Tuesday, June 11 at 5-7:30 pm
Silverthorne Library
651 Center Circle
Silverthorne

These open houses are to let the public know about the progress of a study looking into the viability of rail along the Front Range. I am concerned that the people who are conducting these studies are not qualified to do so. I am also concerned that the public are not being properly informed of what is happening. For example, I am concerned that the meeting for the north area is not in either Fort Collins or Greeley and is not accessible by any kind of transit.

Downtown Boulder Bus Stops are Moving

Boulder is converting 14th Street near the bus station to pedestrian/bus/bike only. As such on May 29, 14th Street between Canyon and Walnut will be permanently closed to cars. Local buses will be moved for three months to the other side of Canyon, to 14th between Canyon and Arapahoe. Stops that are now on the east side of the street will remain on the east side of the street. Stops that are now on the west side of the street will remain on the west side of the street. On street parking will be removed during this time.

Any bus that goes inside the Boulder Transit Center building will continue to do so. All bus stops currently stop on Canyon or Walnut will remain exactly as they are now.

I think that it would be interesting for the City of Boulder to monitor clients of the businesses and events along 13th. I am more likely to go to the Dushanbe Tea House and the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art. During this time, BMOCA is hosting an exhibition of paper art and the Dushanbe Tea House is hosting the Rocky Mountain Tea Festival.

It would be also interesting to see if more Boulder High School students start taking the bus as this moves all the downtown buses to within a block of the school. Although student ridership is pretty high already.

Questions:

1. Will pedestrian access to the Transit Center be blocked in any way? It looks like people can walk from Pearl Street just fine, but that access from Canyon may be blocked.

Here is the answer from the City of Boulder: "a sidewalk on one side of 14^th Street will be open at all times and the detour signage will guide walkers through the area."

Update: I have walked the whole area, and I could get everywhere with no safety issues.

Your Chance to See if Changes in Broomfield are Improvements

Transportation Progress: Broomfield and Beyond
Thursday, May 23, 6:00 - 7:30
Broomfield Auditorium (south of Mamie Doud Library)
3 Community Park Road
Broomfield
Bus: 112
The 120 and the 128 are also close.

The official meeting announcement reads, "Join experts from CDOT, RTD, 36 Commuting Solutions and Smart Commute Metro North to learn about progress to implement transit and corridor improvements in the North and Northwest regions, including I-25 and US 36 Express Lanes Project, US 36 Bus Rapid Transit, Northwest Rail, North Metro Rail."

I am concerned that a lot of people would not consider all of these things to be improvements. In fact, I dislike using the word improvement to describe transportation projects. Very few things are 100% good and pretending that something is shuts down public input, leading to tax dollars being used for projects that taxpayers don't want. It also means that we don't mitigate the negative aspects of the projects that we do want. For example, the FasTracks project is taking a lot more space than it needs to, making blocking pedestrians and transit oriented development.

RTD May Board Meeting

Tuesday, May 14 at 5:30 pm
1600 Blake Street, basement
Denver
Bus: This location is around the corner from Market Street Station

The FasTracks Monitoring Committee, Planning and Development Committee, and the Government Relations Committee will be reporting. People who wish to comment usually must be at the meeting by 5:45. Also, the planning and development committee seems to have been completely taken over by developers.

Train Day in Denver

Housing in the Golden Age of Train Travel by Karen Gerdine-Brown
Saturday, May 11 at 1:30 pm
Blair-Caldwell Library
2401 Welton Street
Denver
Bus: 38
Light Rail: D

This a part of the Five Points Housing event.

What should Boulder County charge oil and gas companies for their impact on the counties transportation system?

Public Hearing on Transportation Fees and Amendments to the Transportation Section of the Oil and Gas Regulations
Thursday, May 16 at 4pm
Boulder County Courthouse, third floor
1325 Pearl
Boulder
Bus: 204, 205, 206, 208, 225, DASH, HOP, B, BOLT, JUMP, SKIP
(For some reason, the JUMP is not on Google maps.)

So I did not have enough time to read through report (PDF) by the stupid white boy that the County hired to do the study. (Seriously, if you are not smart enough for government work, stay away from my tax dollars.) Briefly, the oil and gas industry damages the roads. The question is, how much of that damage should the oil and gas industry pay for and how should they pay?

It would be great if someone could go through report, Boulder County Oil and Gas Roadway Impact Study (PDF), and extract the relevant information for the rest of us.

An additional comment period has been added to the end of the meeting.

My First Day Riding the Light Rail by Zerain Martinez

Unlike most Mondays, today I am eager to get to school. Not because of anything special going on at Red Rocks Community College, but because of how I am going to get there. The W Line is open for business, and today is my first day using the light rail. Yipee! Normally, I take the 16 to the Federal Center Station and then catch the 17 to RRCC. Going home is reversed, the 17 to the Fed Center and then the 16 home. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

The weather is nice today. I walk to the Garrison Street Station, which is twice as far away as the 16 bus stop I regularly use. There are a whopping two other riders waiting for the train. Not exactly what I expected, but hey, it's the first day. My plan is to take the train to the RRCC Station and then catch the 17 to school. The ride on the train is smooth and quick. In less than 15 minutes I'm at my destination. I walk to the 17 bus stop and realize I already messed up. The 17 isn't coming for another 20 minutes. I can either wait or just walk up the hill. The walk won't take me more than a few minutes so I decide to just walk the rest of the way. This gives me time to check my iPhone and find out what I did wrong. Lo and behold, I was suppose to take the train to the Fed Center and then catch the 17 to school. Ok, no harm no foul. All I have to remember is that my commute to school is the same. Instead of the 16, I substitute the light rail.

After school, I board the 17 and head to the Fed Center. I'm on autopilot and plan on taking my usual bus home, sweet number 16. The first thing I notice is that the 17's route has been cut short. It's now basically just a shuttle service between the Fed Center and RRCC. The second thing I notice is that I can't seem to find the 16 bus stop at the Fed Center. Houston, we have a problem. I start my gridpattern search for the elusive 16 bus stop.

During my search, it dawns on me that there seem to be a bunch of people wearing the same type of clothing and clustered in groups talking to each other. At first, I thought they were fellow riders but they weren't necessarily waiting at bus stops. I'm a diehard introvert. For me to approach a complete stranger and initiate conversation takes a conscious effort. It's kind of sad, but I have to actually visualize the whole process. After a dry run in my mind, I ask the closest group if they can answer a question about the buses. Eureka, these folks who are all dressed alike are here to answer ridership questions. Part of me wants to ask why they aren't proactively walking to each rider and asking people if they have any questions. Another thing, why don't these folks have big lettering on their shirts, "Ask me for help". The other part of me that just wants to get home wins out and I keep my dissatisfaction to myself. I'm informed that the 16 no longer runs to the Fed Center. To get home, I just need to take the train back to the Garrison Street Station. I board the train and head home.

My first day could have been better.

Fort Collins has a bus riders group

Barrier Busters - Public Transit Action Group
Wednesday, May 8, 3:45 to 5:15
Downtown Transit Center
250 N. Mason Street
Fort Collins
Bus: 1, 5, 8, 9, 14, 15, 18
The Flex will get you from the Orchards Mall in Loveland to the Mall Transfer Point in Fort Collins and from there you need to change.

BB-PTAG is "an organization working to assure equal access to public places and effective transportation for all people regardless of their disability in Fort Collins, Colorado." This meeting will focus on their liaison work with other organizations that have similar or related goals.

Hopefully, one of their members will be able to write a more in depth description.

In Boulder Complete Streets include Transit

Thursday, May 9 at 5 pm
Complete Streets Innovation Open HouseAlfalfa's Community Room
1651 Broadway
Boulder
Bus: DASH, SKIP, JUMP, 204, 225, AB, B, GS
Be careful if you get off the JUMP across the street. Drivers often ignore pedestrians in that crosswalk.
This location is a five to ten minute walk from the downtown Boulder RTD station.

The discussion will focus on improving education about bike infrastructure and getting more people involved with transit planning within the city of Boulder.

Transit use has increased 300% in Boulder since 1990. However, it has declined lately. Connections into Boulder have been cut. If you can't get into Boulder on the bus, you are less likely to take the bus. Also, bus service got to the point that it was faster and cheaper than driving. That is no longer the case in some areas.

I will be interested to see what issues this open house addresses.