Starting today, home grocery delivery service is available to all of the Regional Transportation District (RTD)’s Access-a-Ride customers. RTD is offering this service during the COVID-19 state of emergency to provide current Access-a-Ride customers with a food delivery option that does not require leaving home. No fare is required for customers to use this service.  

RTD Board of Directors Chair Angie Rivera-Malpiede has been using RTD for as long as she can remember, making her a passionate advocate for the system. Winning the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials Celebrating Women Who Move the Nation Award is an incredible honor for her.  

As RTD upholds its core value of safety, it is especially important during these difficult times that we focus on keeping our passengers and employees safe and healthy. We provide a vital service and are a lifeline to many people in the community, and it is crucial that we continue operating for the public that relies on us. The situation changes daily, and we are in close contact and cooperation with state, regional and local authorities about best practices, safe operations and communication with the public. 

Just because you can’t (and shouldn’t) take a bus or train to your favorite places right now, you can still be part of the action. And that’s where we come in. RTD is all about connecting people, bringing communities together, and we always will be. And now, we’ll connect you to some of the destinations you can still visit from the comfort and safety of your own home.

A hardworking team of RTD employees is always at work – some seen and some unseen. These are the dedicated members of the agency’s security division. 

Lawyers sometimes get a bad rap. Images of lawyers in popular culture have them aggressive, no-nonsense, reinforcing your need to question their motives, rarely on “the up-and-up,” and have you on your guard around them in case you incriminate yourself for something.

RTD’s Board of Directors at its March 24 meeting approved reducing service 40 percent beginning April 19 in reaction to a severe ridership drop amid COVID-19 lockdowns, running buses every day on a Saturday and Regional schedule and light rail trains on a Sunday schedule. RTD will retain current service until that date.

RTD's Board of Directors tonight approved changes that will reduce the agency’s bus, light rail and special services starting April 19. 

While government agencies and institutions work tirelessly to help Coloradans through these difficult times, RTD’s main priority during the COVID-19 crisis is to keep employees, riders and the general public as safe as possible. Meanwhile, the rapidly unfolding societal shutdowns related to COVID-19 are deeply impacting RTD’s finances. As a result, the agency is initiating plans to recover as quickly as possible.

RTD will maintain current transit service levels during Mayor Michael Hancock’s stay-at-home orders for the City and County of Denver. RTD provides crucial connections for many essential workers throughout the Denver metro area. Public transportation has been deemed a critical service by Governor Jared Polis in his executive order for non-essential businesses to reduce in-person workforce by 50 percent.  

We at RTD value the need of our riders experiencing disabilities to continue their daily life and work. We are taking extraordinary steps to communicate these changes and opportunities to all of our customers, across all of RTD’s platforms. Following are questions and answers we have received about RTD’s Access-a-Ride service.

As RTD upholds its core value of safety, it is especially important during these difficult times that we focus on keeping our passengers and employees safe and healthy. We provide a vital service and are a lifeline to many people in the community, and it is crucial that we continue operating for the public that relies on us. The situation changes daily, and we are in close contact and cooperation with state, regional and local authorities about best practices, safe operation and communication with the public.

We know that RTD riders, employees and their families are all dealing with significant challenges as a result of the spread of COVID-19 throughout the metro area and the state of Colorado. We want to be proactive in communicating with everyone how we are adjusting to the situation while keeping people as safe as possible. Things change quickly, so please keep in touch with this space, with RTD’s mobile messaging apps and with your local media for the latest developments.

With the coronavirus having moved to the community spread stage, the Regional Transportation District (RTD) is announcing the following changes, beginning immediately, that affect its riders and customers.

You can take the girl out of Texas – but you can’t take Texas out of the girl. Meet Beckie Bailey, a bespectacled parts clerk based out of RTD’s District Shops division who embodies all of the sunshine of her native Lone Star State.

RTD continues to uphold the safety and security of our passengers and employees as one of our highest values.

When someone dials the main phone number of a big agency like RTD, it’s natural to wonder: Can they help me? Will they listen? Do they care? Is anyone going to pick up? Lupe Jones did – for 23 years.

On Tuesday, March 10, RTD will propose modifications to the service reduction plan that was recommended to the Board of Directors in December in response to the operator shortage. These modifications are the result of feedback from 20 public meetings and 15 outreach events with riders and local officials.

As the threat of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the United States increases, we want to remind you how you can protect yourself when riding RTD services. While our vehicles are cleaned every day, there are measures you can take to further protect yourself from getting sick. Check out these facts and tips and continue to check back for updates.

I’m honored and excited to be here serving as interim general manager and CEO until a permanent one is named. I’ve met some employees and everyone has been so very welcoming. Thank you. It’s nice to see dedicated employees who love what they do and what RTD does for the community.

Accessibility questions for RTD and its riders are rarely fixed and unchanging. The best word is “situational.” 

RTD has formed a unique collaboration with Swansea Elementary School and one of Denver’s master street artists to create artwork unique to the historical neighborhood surrounding the 48 & Brighton National Western Center Station.

The Regional Transportation District (RTD) is considering issuing a formal notice of default to the N Line design-build contractor, Regional Rail Partners (RRP) – a joint venture of Balfour Beatty Rail Infrastructure and Graham Contracting – due to the contractor’s continued delays in meeting project milestones and inability to fulfill its contractual obligations.

Board of Directors tonight approved a contract for Paul Ballard to be the agency’s interim general manager and CEO. Ballard will begin his role no later than February 26.

The next time you are straddling a mound of freshly fallen snow at your bus stop or scrambling to stay upright on a three-day-old layer of ice, you might as well throw your curses and hexes in the right direction. 

Darla Sutton Miller is ready to commit to the E Line. But she’s still waiting for the E Line to fully commit to her, and to other reliable commuters who have been left stranded in the fall and early winter of RTD’s severe staffing shortages and train cancellations.

That Saturday morning in late December began as a great one for Rashida Way-Smith. While guiding her Access-a-Ride van along South Parker Road – a street she’d been on countless times – the driver enjoyed Tim McGraw’s voice on the radio and the quiet presence of the two passengers behind her.

They’re not just throwing darts. While RTD’s choices of routes to consider reducing may seem cold or arbitrary to the communities and commuters losing service, the recommendations are made by professional planners who know precisely what pain their proposals will cause.

Public meetings and outreach events for RTD’s May service change will take place across RTD’s service district in February and March, providing the community with close to three dozen in-person opportunities to learn more about and weigh in on modifications to the agency’s bus, rail and special services.

The RTD Board of Directors chose former Fort Worth, Texas, transit CEO Paul Ballard on Tuesday night as the interim general manager and CEO for the Denver metro agency, and will begin negotiations on Ballard’s contract. Ballard, who retired from Fort Worth’s Trinity Metro transit agency last year, was the only finalist from outside Colorado.

The Regional Transportation District (RTD)’s Board of Directors tonight appointed Paul Ballard as the agency’s interim general manager and CEO, bringing to a close a search that began late last year when outgoing leader Dave Genova announced his retirement. 

Members of the Colorado Legislature this session have introduced a bill that would significantly alter how RTD is governed and managed, raising agency concerns that the proposed changes would add layers of bureaucracy and divert crucial resources from transit improvements. 

RTD was recognized by the WTS Colorado chapter for its innovation of journey planning and purchasing tickets all in one setting: the Uber app.

As we prepare to say goodbye to retiring General Manager and CEO Dave Genova, we asked him a few last questions.

Proposed temporary service reduction will save RTD about $12.4 million over a year and relieve some pressure on mandating six-day work weeks for operators, but it will not immediately solve the agency’s severe operator shortage, RTD staff told the Board of Directors on Tuesday night.

As the RTD Board of Directors moves forward with its search for the agency’s interim general manager and CEO, the Board has established next steps in selecting a top finalist. The Board invites the public and RTD employees to provide their comments about the five finalists being considered for the role.