Thinking outside the box necessary for RTD
Re: “Proposal would beef up RTD’s urban lines,” Oct. 26 news story
As usual, we get mired in the push and pull of different mitigating factors on feasibility, solvency and survival of public transit — even without the financial pressures of a pandemic on state budgets.
What is missing is creativity and alignment of the motivations and financial incentives of the various types of consumers using public transit or who simply believe in its value and willing to pay into the system for the greater good. We know that Uber wins on price and convenience on shorter trips, at least that is the calculation in my head. Maybe RTD should keep trips not well served by Uber — such as regional transit — and refocus on how to take the short- ride business back via circulators between neighborhood entertainment districts and concert/ venue specific routes, and schedules for moving larger groups on specific days and times.
In addition, different price structures and incentives are needed to answer the question in the consumer’s head, “is this less expensive and/ or more convenient than the alternative”? The commuter from Evergreen who comes into the city for entertainment only has a different pass and price point vs. the person living within a few miles who comes for work and entertainment.
We know our current system is not sustainable. We also know that motivations for using public transit range from not having a car to caring for the environment. Our solutions need to be as adaptive and creative too.
Trupti Suthar, Denver
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I read a recent article about
RTD’s latest suspended service cuts and the shift to reimagine a more effective service post- COVID- 19. It is important that we focus our service where we have the greatest need for ridership now but to reimagine our regional transportation network, we need to reimagine our streets.
This means a shift away from single- occupancy car priorities. Instead of expanding lanes to highways and avenues or creating new developments with additional parking, we should be expanding sidewalks to protect pedestrians, connecting bike lanes to bus stops and transportation hubs, and focusing on improving Rapid Bus Transit along popular ridership routes.
We should expand safe access to our streets, much like the Denver Shared Streets program has done to encourage a shared place to walk with your family, enjoy a local restaurant or take a jog to the park.
COVID has thrown every city and transportation department a curveball this year. Instead of business as usual, we should reevaluate and reimagine our streets to ensure a future of success for our RTD service.
Countries around the world are working to become carbon neutral by 2050. The United States could do this too, but we can start laying the groundwork at the local level. A path to carbon- neutral means a bike path instead of a parking lot, extended sidewalks and crosswalks instead of an updated highway interchange, and more pedestrian safe spaces where we can hopefully all reunite once the pandemic has passed.
Brian Funk, Denver