No Oil Trains in Longmont Rally

Sunday, July 6 at 4 pm
Longmont Library/Civic Center Plaza
near 350 Kimbark Street
Bus: within walking distance of the BOLT
(Wish that this event was on a Saturday when most buses run.)

RSVP at Keep oil off the rails and in the ground

Ride Free in Longmont

Here is the official press release on our new free buses:

Ride Free! Longmont program starts Tuesday, July 1

All local Longmont bus routes are free to ride all year

Boulder County, Colo. – All RTD local bus routes in Longmont will be free for riders of all ages starting Tuesday, July 1.Hop on and off as many times as you want, all day long, through the end of 2014.

No passes, cards or identification of any kind is needed to ride local buses that travel solely within Longmont. Regional routes (BOLT, L, and J) are not included, but riders that access regional routes via a local bus can request a transfer that is good for $2.25 off the regional fare.

Local routes serving Longmont include:

·         323: Skyline Crosstown

·         324: Main Street

·         326: Westside Crosstown

·         327: Eastside Crosstown

More information including route maps and schedule information can be found at www.LongmontBus.com.

Ride Free! Longmont is made possible through a collaboration of the City of Longmont, Boulder County, and the State of Colorado. The six-month cost of the program is estimated at $108,000, which is the fare revenue RTD would have collected over this time from the four routes they provide.

Boulder County obtained a State of Colorado grant that will cover 50 percent of the total cost of the program. The grant is aimed at providing transportation assistance to low-income families. The remaining half of the costs will be split between Boulder County and the city of Longmont. Boulder County’s funding source comes directly from the voter-approved Transit and Trails sales tax that is intended to increase transit ridership in Boulder County.

“This is a great program for Longmont residents and visitors and an opportunity to increase ridership on Longmont buses,” said Boulder County Transportation Multi-Modal Division Manager Scott McCarey. “Transportation costs in low and moderate income families can rival the cost of housing, and RTD surveys show that 62 percent of passengers on the four local Longmont routes have total annual incomes of less than $25,000. A free bus ride each day can save a family a lot of money that can go to other necessities. We see this as a win-win-win program for Boulder County, Longmont, and RTD.”

For more information on the program, visit the Ride Free! Longmont website, or contact Scott McCarey at smccarey@bouldercounty.org or 303-441-3900.

Now we just need to get free buses in the rest of the metro area.

Congress Should Restore Transit Funding

Transit agencies get some money from the Highway Trust Fund, so when the fund runs out of money, those agencies will lose one source of revenue. The greatest impact will be on rural agencies that live in communities that cannot afford basic service.

Here is the message that I emailed my congressional representatives about this issue:

I recently learned that when the Highway Trust Fund runs out of money in September, transit agencies will stop receiving money. This is a problem. 70% of Americans want money for buses and trains increased.

Congress should restore this money. In fact, Congress should increase funding. I would like to see buses and trains get $8 billion more. Investments in buses and trains increase tax revenue, so this proposal would pay for itself.

Gold Line/NW Rail Open House

Saturday, June 21 at 9 - 11 am
Olde Town Square
5751 Olde Wadsworth Boulevard
Arvada
Bus: must walk from Arvada Park-n-Ride or the buses on Ralston.

Denver Transit Partners, the private contractor that is running this project, is holding an open house on the Gold Line which will run through Arvada and the Northwest Line which is currently going to end in Westminster. Among other things, people can see station designs and learn about new train cars. This is an informational meeting only. If you see something you dislike, you need to contact your RTD board member and your city council rep.

Building Blocks for Passenger Rail

Colorado Rail Passenger Association Spring Meeting
Saturday, June 14, 9:30-noon
Bear Valley Branch Library
5171 W. Dartmouth Avenue
Denver
Bus: 51

9:00 Doors Open

9:30 Meeting Starts

9:40 Legislation: What Difference Does It Make and How Do We Get It?
                            by Julie Hoerner Mowry, our volunteer lobbyist

10:10 Membership Discussion

11:10 RTD Northwest Mobility Study
          by Chris Quinn, FasTracks Project Manager

11:40 Election of Board Members

Meeting will end and room will be cleared by noon.

RTD's June Board Meeting

Tuesday, June 24 at 5:30 pm
RTD Administrative Offices
160 Blake Street
Denver
Bus: 0, 6, 20, 28, 32, 44

At this meeting the board will be considering the Northwest Mobility study. I am concerned that this group has developed a consensus that does not reflect the wishes and needs of the residents and taxpayers of the north area.

There will also be a group coming to ask for cheaper bus passes.

The Hessie Shuttle is Back

UPDATE: The bus now runs to and from Nederland Park-n-Ride, 300 Jackson Street, and Saturday hours have been shortened because their is less daylight in the fall. The last bus runs at 6 pm. Also, buses run every 20 minutes instead of 15 some parts of the day.

Starting this Saturday, June 7 and running until Sunday, October 5, the free Hessie Shuttle runs from Nederland High School to the Hessie Trailhead, an entry point to the Indian Peaks Wilderness. The bus runs every 15 minutes from 8 to 8 on Saturdays and 8 to 6 on Sundays and holidays. To make this a bus only trip, take the N bus from Boulder. Unfortunately, the N is not a free bus although it does take EcoPasses.