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Tag: transporation

  • Judge allows price hike for RTD disability transit program to take effect Jan. 1

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    Jamie Lewis, an organizer with the Colorado Cross Disability Coalition, pickets with activists outside of RTD’s downtown Denver headquarters, ahead of a vote that could limit access to accessible rides. July 29, 2025. Despite attempts to block the price increase, a federal judge denied a preliminary

    Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    Starting on New Year’s Day, people with disabilities will pay more to use a popular on-demand paratransit program in metro Denver. The change is taking effect as planned after a federal judge declined to grant a preliminary injunction to block it.

    In an order issued Monday, District Judge S. Kato Crews wrote that the plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Regional Transportation District “have not met their burden to prove a substantial likelihood of success on the merits.” The case is ongoing.

    The disability rights group Atlantis ADAPT and the activists sued RTD earlier this month over changes to the service, Access-on-Demand. The lawsuit claimed that the changes, including implementing a new base fare of $4.50, violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act, and that riders with disabilities are being singled out by RTD. 

    “Access-on-Demand is a lifeline for Coloradans with disabilities … It offers flexible, consistent access to workplaces, grocery stores, doctors’ offices, restaurants, and more — allowing Coloradans with disabilities to access and enjoy public space on the same terms as Coloradans without disabilities,” the complaint stated.

    The plaintiffs also alleged that the changes flouted a promise made in a ballot measure passed by voters in 2024. Measure 7A allowed RTD to keep tax revenue that it otherwise would have had to refund to taxpayers under Colorado’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights. Ballot language said the excess tax revenue would go toward purposes like maintaining services for people with disabilities. 

    In its filed response, RTD argued the plaintiffs “have not demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits or irreparable harm, and the balance of equities and public interest tip in RTD’s favor as a public agency with the responsibility to operate in the best interests of all customers in a fiscally responsible manner.” The agency has called its AoD program an “optional premium service” in its filing, and said it was not required under federal law to provide it.

    The judge seemed to agree, determining that RTD’s changes to AoD do not violate the ADA “and Plaintiffs have failed to identify some facially neutral policy or procedure that has a disproportionate impact on disabled persons. They instead point only to Defendant’s single action of making unflattering changes to an optional program the law does not require Defendant to provide in the first instance,” wrote Judge Crews.

    In a statement released Tuesday morning, RTD General Manager and CEO Debra A. Johnson said she was “pleased” with the court’s decision. 

    “As a steward of public funds, RTD remains committed to making fiscally responsible decisions that optimize service availability and the customer experience for all who utilize its bus, rail, and paratransit services,” Johnson said.

    In its own statement, ADAPT Colorado said Johnson’s “attempt to frame this procedural ruling as validation is misleading.”

    The statement read: “A denial of a preliminary injunction is not a finding that RTD is right, nor that people with disabilities are wrong … RTD’s Board of Directors’ determination to ignore the disability community, and inflict harm on us while management mysteriously lost 250 million taxpayer dollars is not good stewardship. It’s dereliction of duty and willful resistance to civil rights.”

    Access-on-Demand launched as a pilot project about five years ago. It offers subsidized, on-demand rides for qualified riders via certain ride-share and taxi companies. The flexibility and affordability appealed to paratransit riders, and it became a popular program. AoD had about 3,400 users in August, according to the lawsuit.

    RTD officials have said increasing ridership has made AoD unsustainable. Overall, RTD is operating a record $1.5 billion budget in 2026, but it faces a “structural” deficit and officials have said they’re worried about the long-term budget implications of the on-demand paratransit program.

    Disability rights activists protest outside of RTD’s downtown Denver headquarters, ahead of a vote that could limit access to accessible rides. July 29, 2025.
    Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    But advocates have pushed back against the agency’s claims about the program’s financial viability, and riders and RTD wrestled over the issue for well over a year.

    RTD’s Board of Directors approved the changes in late September in a 10-5 vote, reducing the RTD subsidy from $25 to $20 per ride and implementing a base fare of $4.50 per ride, or $2.25 for those who qualify for RTD’s income-based discount program. Other modifications included reducing the service’s availability by a couple of hours per day. The Sept. 30 meeting included hours of public testimony on how the service has impacted people’s lives for the better, and the final vote was met with audible cries of disapproval. 

    As the debate around AoD changes intensified, transit and disability advocates have also called on RTD to do a more comprehensive study, including a deeper look at its older Access-A-Ride service, to understand how well the agency is meeting the needs of the region’s disability communities. Several board directors have also signaled support for a “holistic review” of the agency’s entire paratransit system, and the state legislature’s RTD Accountability Committee voted earlier this month to recommend that RTD “undertake a comprehensive analysis and planning effort” as well.

    In a statement to CPR News, Director JoyAnn Ruscha, who voted against the modifications, said she hopes the next board chair “takes an all-hands-on-deck approach to paratransit. 

    “All of this focus on Access-on-Demand took the spotlight away from Access-a-Ride, which is facing a myriad of problems right now. For some riders, it’s not even usable,” she wrote. “It is important to remember that what is legal is not always just. Meeting the bare minimums of anti-discrimination laws in public transit is like waking up and finding the floor.”

    Who is ADAPT?

    Over the last several decades, ADAPT has played a key role in the disability rights movement in the U.S. 

    It was born out of a historic protest for accessible public transit, when a group of 19 activists, known as “The Gang of 19,” brought downtown Denver traffic to a standstill by using their bodies to block two RTD buses for roughly 24 hours in July of 1978. They demanded accessible transit as they chanted: “We will ride.” 

    The group was a driving force in demonstrations in the U.S. Capitol in 1990, credited with getting federal lawmakers to pass the ADA. Over the summer, RTD’s Board of Directors voted to rename its downtown Civic Center Station in honor of the late Rev. Wade Blank, who co-founded Atlantis Community and was instrumental in organizing The Gang of 19 and early ADAPT activism. 

    “Whatever legal definitions RTD now relies on, this is not what voters thought they were approving. The RTD gravy train stops here,” ADAPT’s Tuesday statement continued.

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    Stephanie Wolf

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  • After 5 years, Denver’s breaking up with Lime and Bird

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    A scooterer rides over the Cherry Creek Trail near Wewatta Street. Dec. 8, 2023.

    Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    Lime and Bird’s fleets of dockless bikes and scooters will leave Denver next year as the city brings in a new micromobility operator.

    Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure announced an exclusive contract last week with Veo, a micromobility company that launched in 2017 on Purdue University’s campus. 

    Veo will deploy its scooters and bikes in Denver this spring. Veo currently operates in Washington, New York City and Los Angeles.

    Meanwhile, the city’s license agreements with Bird and Lime are set to expire in May. 

    In a press release, DOTI said it’s negotiating a three-year license agreement with Veo, and that people enrolled in programs with Lime and Bird will transfer to Veo in 2026. The negotiations are “likely to last several months,” according to DOTI.

    It’s a significant change.

    Lime and Bird have offered thousands of scooters and bikes in Denver for years. Lime and Bird first deployed scooter fleets without authorization in 2018, causing an uproar and prompting the city to confiscate hundreds of two-wheelers.

    Later, several mobility companies, including Lime and Bird, worked out agreements with the city. Lime and Bird’s agreements were for five years.

    “Denver’s micromobility program is one of the most successful and popular in the nation,” said Amy Ford, executive director of DOTI, in a press release. “Our goal is to build on that success with an emphasis on safety for riders and pedestrians, keeping sidewalks clear and organized, and expanding access to micromobility to serve more residents and support the sustainability of our city with convenient, attractive, and affordable transportation options.”

    The previous Lime and Bird contracts were non-financial, meaning the city didn’t pay the companies, nor did the companies pay the city. But the agreements required free or subsidized rides for low-income residents and set other rules.  

    DOTI listed various reasons for choosing Veo, including its “diverse fleet of attractive scooters and bikes with leading safety and accessibility features, its commitment to affordability and its flexible equity program.”

    City officials said having a single company would be simpler for riders and the local government.

    Lime and Bird have contracts with the city and with RTD to offer various services around Denver, and both companies have different equity programs that allow for low-income or undocumented people to ride the vehicles for free or at a discounted rate. In 2026, the city says it will share information about how people currently enrolled in those programs can transfer over to Veo. 

    Once the negotiations are done, the Denver City Council will vote on the Veo contract. 

    Zach Williams, regional head of government relations forLime, said in a statement that the announcement came as a surprise. 

    “We are Denver’s longest-serving shared micromobility provider, strongly preferred by Denverites and Lime Access riders across the city. Equity in particular has always been at the center of Denver’s shared micromobility program, and we’re proud of the last five years we spent in partnership with the city to build one of the largest access programs in the world. As such we were surprised and disappointed by DOTI’s announcement last week,” he wrote.

    Micro-mobility scooters and bikes have been controversial since the beginning.

    The micromobility vehicles were deployed en masse to major cities over the last decade, drawing criticism that they were dangerous and unregulated.

    Denver has been cracking down on the services lately. In May, Denver City Council unanimously approved a new law to keep riders off city sidewalks and to ensure the scooters aren’t left in random or obstructing places.

    Under the new law, the city can fine the companies themselves for riders’ behavior. When city officials find a misplaced scooter, they can simply put the fine on the companies’ tab. The law also will require that riders pass a knowledge test before renting a scooter or e-bike.

    Meanwhile, the companies will have to make some changes to their vehicles and infrastructure, including sensors that can detect when a vehicle is operating on the sidewalk. When a scooter is on the sidewalk, the companies will have to take action — for example, by increasing the rider’s bill, slowing the scooter or sounding an alarm.

    The new law takes effect summer 2026, and Veo says it will follow the requirements, according to DOTI. 

    Bird and Lime operate more than 4,200 electric bikes and scooters in Denver.

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  • Opinion | Ukraine is Starving Russia of Oil

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    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has labeled his military’s strikes on Russia’s oil infrastructure “the most effective sanctions.” Meanwhile, reports indicate that alongside urging Europe and India to halt purchases of Russian oil, Washington plans to share additional intelligence with Ukraine on Russian refineries, pipelines and other energy infrastructure.

    Most discussions about these “sanctions” have focused on their financial implications for Russia. Vladimir Putin relies heavily on corruption and patronage, with oil and gas serving as key revenue streams. Disrupting the flow could force Mr. Putin to choose between sustaining the war and maintaining the payouts to oligarchs and citizens that secure his political backing—though such an economic squeeze would take some time.

    Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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    Michael Bohnert

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  • Denver canceled part of a protected bike lane near Sloan’s Lake. Here’s why

    Denver canceled part of a protected bike lane near Sloan’s Lake. Here’s why

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    Last spring, Denver officials announced plans to upgrade the bike lane along West 29th Avenue from Sheridan Boulevard to Zuni Street, lining it with posts or other barriers . The creation of the new “protected” lane was part of a citywide effort to improve road safety.

    But by August, the city had watered down its plans after hearing complaints from shop owners on 29th Avenue. And last week, officials announced a more dramatic change.

    The final version of the project will only include a protected lane for about 1.5 miles of its 2-mile length. The section west of Tennyson Street will remain unprotected in order to save parking spots for nearby residents and businesses.

    The 29th Avenue bike lane is already a main route for cyclists traveling between the Cherry Creek Trail, downtown, Highland and northwest Denver, and it will likely become more popular once improvements are completed by spring 2025. Other protected east-west bike lanes on the north side are few and far between.

    The decision to pare the project back was immediately criticized by bicycle advocates, who saw it as city officials prioritizing the convenience of residents’ free on-street parking over cyclists’ safety.

    “Protected lanes are better for both car traffic and bike traffic because … it keeps us from getting into the road and keeps them from getting into us,” said David Fay, who lives just a few blocks off 29th and often drives and bikes on the street.

    Sloan’s Lake resident David Fay said he would’ve appreciated protected bike lanes for the entirety of West 29th Avenue.
    Nathaniel Minor / Denverite

    Some residents, on the other hand, say they are grateful the city listened to their concerns after they say the project was sprung on them earlier this year.

    City officials said they removed plans for protection from the half-mile stretch to “balance the needs of the community.” That part of the road will still see safety improvements like a lower speed limit and speed cushions. The city still plans to install bike lane protections in the eastern section, from Zuni Street to Tennyson Street.

    “I totally understand that it doesn’t go as far as some of our bike advocates would like to see, but we are improving the safety of this corridor, absolutely,” DOTI community designer Molly Lanphier told Denverite. 

    The West 29th Avenue bike lane plans were on a fast track. 

    The city has long known that West 29th Avenue is dangerous. It’s part of the city’s “high-injury network” of roads that account for a disproportionate share of traffic deaths and serious injuries. Between 2018 and 2024, nearly 300 crashes were reported to Denver Police, with 11 resulting in serious injuries and one in a death, a city analysis says.

    The city is trying — and so far failing — to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries through its ambitious “Vision Zero” plan. Mayor Mike Johnston has sought to jumpstart the effort through more automated enforcement and other relatively quick fixes. 

    Longer-term, though, the city is striving to redesign its most dangerous streets and has big goals to shift more drivers onto bikes and transit. Some major roads will get bike lanes, officials say, and 29th Avenue is a priority.

    On-street parking spots were full in front of a row of shops at West 29th Avenue
    On-street parking spots were full in front of a row of shops at West 29th Avenue and Tennyson Street on Monday, Oct. 21, 2024.
    Nathaniel Minor / Denverite

    In January, 29th Avenue made it onto DOTI’s schedule for repaving this year — a perfect opportunity to upgrade the bike lane. Planners at the department began working up a slate of safety changes that could be baked into the paving project. Unlike a complicated project like the Broadway bike lane, which took the city years to complete, this one was on pace to take a fraction of that time.

    “We do move really quick …  when we have a paving-bike lane project,” Lanphier said. 

    The city sent out about 7,000 mailers and in April held its first public meeting on the project, where the top concern from residents was a desire to slow traffic, Lanphier said. Protected bike lanes can slow traffic by reducing drivers’ perceived space and encouraging them to drive more cautiously.

    In July, the city collected more than 200 responses to a non-scientific survey that indicated support for removing parking and adding a protected bike lane. More than half of the respondents said they lived or owned a business within a few blocks of 29th or traveled the street daily.

    But then city officials started to hear from worried residents and business owners.

    In August, the city adjusted its plans — saving parking spots in front of businesses by eliminating some of the bike lane buffers in the western stretch of the project. That left just two-and-a-half blocks of protected bike lanes between Sheridan and Tennyson. Protecting cyclists in that section would have removed around 17 on-street parking spots.

    But residents were still upset. Lanphier said more than 100 people reached out to the city even after the August design was supposedly final.

    One of those worried residents was Alicia Wilkinson, a homeowner on West 29th Avenue. Wilkinson said she often bikes with her husband and six-year-old son in the neighborhood and was initially excited to hear that safety improvements were planned. 

    Then she learned she would have lost the on-street parking in front of her house, forcing her to park on a side street about a block away. On some days, she said, that would be a minor inconvenience.

    “But other days, carrying a sick child or an elderly parent trying to get them to a car, that impact —  that’s what seemed unreasonable,” she said. 

    So, she went door-to-door in her neighborhood, talking to other residents about the city’s plans.

    “A majority of the people that we talked to had no idea this was happening,” she said.

    Amy Ford, DOTI’s executive director, met with residents and ultimately made the decision to cut the protected bike lane and keep the parking on those few blocks, Lanphier said.

    Wilkinson said she appreciates the change, even if she was disheartened by some of the heat she took from internet commenters after appearing in earlier news stories about the bike lane.

    “I think with community input, all community input, the cycling community and the [local neighborhoods] such as Sloan’s Lake working together, maybe there could have been a more holistic design and end result,” she said.

    Read: Liam Stewart was killed on his bicycle last year. His dad is still fighting to make Littleton’s streets safer

    The city says a protected bike still might come to the western end of 29th Avenue, eventually.

    DOTI will try to do better outreach for future projects earlier in the process, Lanphier said. Still, she maintained that planned changes like the addition of 20 speed cushions along 29th Avenue will make the entire span of the project safer.

    “At the end of the day, we’re not going to make everyone happy,” she said. “And our ultimate goal is to try and make streets safer for everyone.”

    The city is still dedicated to “transformative” bike infrastructure projects, she said, and has stood by some of its controversial works, like a protected bike lane on East Yale Avenue in south Denver. That got “very mixed reviews,” Lanphier said, but early data shows that crashes along that corridor have fallen by 20 percent since it was installed.

    If speeding remains a problem on 29th Avenue after the project wraps up, Lanphier said they’ve told residents that a protected bike lane is “still on the table.” 

    “We will look at our evaluation and the data that it gives us and continue to make decisions that do work us toward Vision Zero,” she said.

    Fay, the neighborhood cyclist, said protected lanes make a big difference to him. He used to commute into downtown on 23rd Avenue. The city added protected bike lanes there about four years ago.

    “That feels so much better,” he said.

    The city eliminated dozens of parking spots for that project, telling concerned residents that safety was more important than convenience.

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  • Take a spin through the new Montbello e-bike library

    Take a spin through the new Montbello e-bike library

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    What do you do if you live in a transportation desert?

    Public transportation is slim to none. Your neighborhood doesn’t have access to ride-share bikes and scooters.

    One answer: Bring in your own form of transportation.

    That’s what neighborhood leaders in Montbello have done with the launch of their e-bike library and community e-van rental.

    Last week, the Montbello Organizing Committee celebrated the opening of their e-bike and e-van rental program, as well as the installation of new charging stations.

    ‘We needed to create something for ourselves’

    Smithsonian Magazine defines a transportation desert as a place “where demand for transportation exceeds supply.”

    A certified transportation desert, the Montbello neighborhood is in Denver’s far northeast corner — emphasis on “far.” In Montbello, there are limited ways to get around and get to the neighborhood.

    Montbello Organizing Committee’s Mersi Canales (left to right), Christopher Urias and Mayra Gonzales stand in front of their new Electric Bike Library in the Montbello Community Building’s parking lot. May 23, 2024.

    Meanwhile, many residents depend on limited public transportation.

    “We’re secluded out here and when you don’t have a lot of options to move around, it really limits your opportunities,” said Mayra Gonzales, MOC’s chief impact officer. “We found that Montbello is really this desert for a lot of things, including electric mobility infrastructure … So, we decided that we needed to create something for ourselves.”

    In 2020, the city’s Office of Climate Action, Sustainability, and Resiliency performed a Community-Based Needs Assessment in Montbello to look at the area’s mobility needs and identify any issues in increasing mobility, specifically electrified mobility solutions.

    The study determined that Montbello wasn’t very accessible and didn’t have the infrastructure for electric mobility.

    Fany Ventura rides around the Montbello Community Building’s parking lot as she tries out a bike from the Montbello Organizing Committee’s new Electric Bike Library. May 23, 2024.

    This isn’t Montbello’s first transportation initiative

    That same year, MOC and other community partners developed the Montbello Moves initiative to help address the transportation challenges.

    Another way the city has helped is through the Montbello Connector, now known as the Denver Connector.

    Through the Connector, residents could call or text the service, be picked up in the neighborhood and dropped off somewhere within the neighborhood for free.

    While the Connector is useful, Gonzales said the service only takes residents around Montbello. If folks need to go to work or attend an appointment outside the neighborhood, there are still few transportation options.

    The Montbello Organizing Committee’s new Electric Bike Library in the Montbello Community Building’s parking lot. May 23, 2024.

    “What we were finding, and something that our partners who helped us design the [Connector] program were saying is that’s awesome but we can’t leave Montbello,” Gonzales said. “We still have no options if we don’t own a vehicle.”

    The idea for the e-bike library, as well as the e-van rental and the installation of charging stations, emerged through the study, the initiative and some funding.

    That became one part of the transportation solution that would provide a way for folks in Montbello to get around and head outside of the neighborhood.

    So, what’s an e-bike library?

    It’s a fleet of e-bikes residents can rent out.

    Denver currently has three e-bike locations run by Northeast Transportation Connections, a nonprofit that aims to increase mobility resources in underserved communities. Their libraries are located in Sun Valley, Globeville and Elyria-Swansea.

    With the help of Transportation Connections, Gonzales said MOC was able to mold their program to their needs.

    MOC’s fleet consists of 10 bikes that will be housed inside a solar-powered shipping container at the Montbello Community Building, 12000 E. 47th Ave. With the container being solar-powered, the bike batteries can charge for free.

    The Montbello Organizing Committee’s new Electric Bike Library in the Montbello Community Building’s parking lot. May 23, 2024.

    Residents can rent the bikes, through MOC’s website, for up to three days, as well as helmets. The bikes are Class 1 Gazelles that don’t have a throttle for safety reasons, Gonzales said. This way no one accidentally uses the throttle instead of the brakes, which on motorized bikes are typically near each other. Each bike has a ton of lights and a bell for additional safety measures.

    “This is so if someone has never ridden a bike or e-bike, it’s easier to get used to,” Gonzales said. “We want to instill safe practices in everyone.”

    Gonzales said there will also be a bike mechanic on-site to assist with any e-bike needs but will also be available for those who need help with their traditional bikes, such as fixing a flat or tightening their brakes.

    E-bikes at the Electric Bike Library.

    While the main goal of the program is to provide a new transportation method, Gonzales said the vision is to create a community hub where residents can learn more about how to bike and bike responsibly.

    Gonzales said the program is in the piloting phase as MOC learns about charging and maintenance needs, along with community needs. She said eventually the program would allow people to rent the bikes for up to a month and more bikes will come online, including cargo bikes.

    For now, the chargers will remain on site but will also eventually be loaned out to the renters. But the installation of new neighborhood charging stations at the ELK Education Center, 12680 Albrook Dr., will help supplement the need for charging.

    And what about the e-van?

    Community-based organizations will use the wheelchair-accessible van. (Capacity is 10 people, or seven if there’s a wheelchair passenger.)

    Neighborhood groups can sign up for the program through MOC and use it to transport their participants.

    The Montbello Organizing Committee’s new electric van, which they’re making available to local community groups. May 23, 2024.

    For example, Gonzales said groups such as the Colorado Changemakers Collective have already signed up for the program and intend to use it during their summer camp field trips.

    “For our community partners, when they want to take multiple people out with them, they couldn’t do it … because there’s not a vehicle for them to use for all of their members to go,” Gonzales said. “Now this is a service that they can take advantage of.”

    During last week’s celebration, a few community members took a spin around the parking lot to see how the babies rode.

    Maira Gallegos hopped on a bike that matched her outfit.

    She said the program was great, bridging a transportation gap while also getting people outside again.

    Maira Gallegos wears a helmet as she prepares to take up the Montbello Organizing Committee’s new Electric Bike Library on a short pedal. May 23, 2024.

    “This really helps families get around from school, work, to the library, even to the grocery store. We really lack grocery stores as well but I think we’re getting there and it’s really positive that we’re getting this right now,” Gallegos said.

    She added that as interest in the program grows, and the community continues to demand better for their neighborhood, the next steps are to improve nearby infrastructure: more street lights and bike lanes and better pedestrian crossings.

    “I hope parents and community members and anyone in the area knows that you can advocate for what your children, your family and your community needs and it starts with that,” Gallegos said.

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