For the RTD that operated in Los Angeles, see Southern California Rapid Transit District.

The Regional Transportation District, or RTD, was organized in 1969 and is the regional authority operating public transit services in eight of the twelve counties in the Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area in Colorado. RTD is governed by a 15-member, publicly elected Board of Directors. Directors are elected to a four-year term and represent a specific district. Elections are staggered so that eight seats are open in one general election, seven in the next. The 2009 Board members are: Kent Bagley, District H; Barbara Brohl, District D; Noel Busck, District K; Juanita Chacon, District C; William M. Christopher, District J; Bruce Daly, District N; Bill James, District A; Lee Kemp, District I, Christopher Martinez, District B; William G. McMullen, District E; Jack O'Boyle, District G; Wally Pulliam, District L; John Tayer, District O and Tom Tobiassen, District F.^[4]

RTD currently operates a bus and light rail system that has a service area of 2,337 square miles (6,050 km²). It employs 2,526 people and reported over 100 million boardings in calendar years 2007 and 2008.^[5] It had a $372 million budget for the year of 2008 and a $382 million for 2009. Google has RTD schedules attached to its trip planner, and 3rd party mobile applications are now available for the iPhone and other platforms.

RTD is working to deliver the voter-approved FasTracks rapid transit expansion that will add 122 miles (196 km) of new commuter rail and light rail, 18 miles (29 km) of bus rapid transit service, 21,000 new parking spaces at rail and bus stations, and enhance bus service for easy, convenient bus/rail connections across the eight-county district.

Timeline[link]

This article is in a list format that may be better presented using prose. You can help by converting this article to prose, if appropriate. Editing help is available. (May 2008)

• Pre-RTD: The principal provider of public transportation was the Denver Tramway Company, which served the City and County of Denver as well as older portions of Arvada, Aurora, Englewood, Golden, Lakewood, Westminster, and Wheat Ridge and smaller suburbs.
• 1969: RTD was created in the 47th session of the Colorado General Assembly to provide public transportation to five additional counties in the metropolitan area.
• 1969 - 1971: The Denver Tramway Company continues service under sponsorship of the City and County of Denver.
• October 1970: RTD found it needed to establish a Northern Operations Group (NOG) to provide service to Boulder and Longmont. RTD acquired the privately owned Denver-Boulder Bus Company, which also ran airport buses.
• 1971: Denver Metro Transit took over the privately owned Denver Tramway Company. Denver Metro Transit was an entity created by the City and County of Denver. Suburban service only continued for those suburbs willing to contribute a subsidy.
• 1972: RTD created a plan for a personal rapid transit (PRT) system in the area, and a transportation plan was completed—three years after the 1969 legislative mandate. This plan included 98 miles (158 km) of PRT and extensive bus service throughout the areas served by RTD. Later that year, the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) selected RTD to develop PRT as a demonstration project.
• 1973: Residents voted for a sales tax of 1/2% over the six counties served by RTD for ten years; 20% of the funds would be used for expanded bus service and the other 80% were earmarked for PRT construction. The PRT project was eventually scrapped.
• July 1974: Denver Metro Transit became part of RTD.
• 1975-1977: RTD consolidated and expanded and improved service frequency. Service was expanded to routes that commercial carriers previously operated.
• 1978: Inflation caused RTD to implement a new fare structure.

On the D Line

• 1979: Federal approval was prepared for the 16th Street Mall in downtown Denver, originally known as Transitway. The project allowed express bus productivity to double and was eventually intersected by RTD's first light rail line, the D Line, at Stout and California streets.
• 1980: RTD reached a record number of weekday passengers, expanded the park-'n'-Ride system. It also acquired 216 new buses, 89 of which were articulated. Construction began on the 16th Street Mall. Work was also completed to make RTD's service more accessible to elderly and handicapped people.^[1]
• September 1994: Downtown Express/High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes were opened to buses, and to carpools a year later.
• October 1994: RTD opened the Central Corridor light rail line, bringing rail transit back to the region.
• 2000: The Southwest Corridor light rail line opened.
• 2002: The Central Platte Valley spur of RTD's light rail service opened.
• April 2006: Unionized transit workers of the Amalgamated Transit Union went on strike for the first time in 24 years, citing increased health care costs, mandatory overtime, and disproportionate wage increases relative to upper management. Workers walked off the morning of April 3, shutting down the light rail system and decreasing bus service to about 45% of its normal routes, the remaining service being provided by existing RTD subcontractors Laidlaw, Connex, and First Transit. Laidlaw and Connex, whose workers are contracted rather than unionized, would take over many routes operated by RTD, albeit on a reduced schedule, while First Transit, whose workers are unionized, operated only its own routes due to its contract with its workers. A revised contract was approved by the union on April 7, and service resumed on April 10. The strike lasted a total of seven days, and although thousands of commuters were stranded by the strike, only a few backups were reported as customers made makeshift arrangements for commuting or waited out the strike. [2]^{[dead link]}
• November 17, 2006: The Southeast Corridor, a component of the T-REX transportation project, opened.
• May 2013: The West Rail Line of the light rail will open.

Fleet[link]

Gillig and Orion buses make up most of the fleet. MCI and Neoplan vehicles are used as express buses and regional buses. Siemens SD100 and SD160 are used as light rail vehicles. As of January 2010, the RTD light rail fleet has 125 light rail vehicles, serving 35 miles (56 km) of track.

Projects[link]

Past projects[link]

Downtown Express[link]

This project added HOV lanes to I-25 north of downtown Denver. It also added several dedicated slip ramps for RTD buses to access several Park-n-Ride stations directly from the highway. At the south end of the HOV lanes, buses had direct routes into Union Station or Market Street Station. The HOV lanes extended from I-25 to US 36, allowing regional and express routes running along US 36 to downtown Denver to bypass congestion around the Turnpike Tangle. This project was completed in September 1994.

Union Station

In 2006, the Downtown Express was renovated to include a toll lane, thereby converting the HOV lanes into HOT lanes. This allows SOV vehicles to pay a toll to use them. It was built to increase the overall usage and efficiency of the highway's HOV lanes. The project was completed on June 2, 2006.

I-25 & Broadway Light Rail Station

Central Corridor[link]

The Central Corridor, a 5.3 mile (8.5 km) light rail line, opened in October 1994. It was built along Welton Street, through the Five Points district along Stout Street and California Street, and following a railroad right-of-way from Colfax Avenue down to the intersection of I-25 and Broadway. This line was built without the aid of tax increases or federal funds; however, extensions have been funded by the Federal Transit Administration and new tax measures. This line was built from 30th/Downing as the northern terminus to I-25/Broadway as the southern terminus.

Southwest Corridor[link]

After the success of the Central Corridor, the Southwest Corridor light rail route opened in July 2000. An 8.7 mile (13.9 km) light rail line, the route runs from the terminus of the Central Corridor at I-25 & Broadway to Mineral Avenue in Littleton with five existing stations. The line has been popular, and the park-n-Ride lots at its stations often experience parking shortages. This project built a light rail line from I-25/Broadway south to Littleton/Mineral along an existing railroad right-of-way next to Santa Fe Drive.

Central Platte Valley Corridor[link]

Light Rail near Union Station

In April 2002, the Central Platte Valley (CPV) spur opened. It is a 1.8-mile (2.9-km) branch with four stations that provides light rail access to numerous venues, including the Auraria Campus, Invesco Field at Mile High, the Pepsi Center, Elitch Gardens, Union Station and Coors Field. This project built light rail lines from 10th/Osage to Union Station.

University Station (Univ. of Denver)

T-REX Project[link]

Louisiana-Pearl Light Rail Station

In November 1999, Denver area voters approved a project, known as the T-REX, which involved reconstruction of I-25 between Broadway and Lincoln Avenue in Lone Tree, and I-225 between I-25 and Parker Road in Aurora, with widening of the road to 5 lanes and light rail being built. The highway project was completed on August 22, 2006. The light rail line known as the Southeast Corridor opened shortly after 11 a.m. on November 17, 2006. The line covers 19.1 miles (30.6 km) and includes thirteen new stations, with parking available at all but the Louisiana/Pearl station.

Projects under development[link]

FasTracks: A major project to dramatically expand the metro area's rail service. The less densely populated north metro area will receive two commuter rail lines, while the west metro will receive a light rail line and a commuter rail line. In addition, a commuter rail line will connect Denver International Airport to downtown. Union Station will be redeveloped into the hub of the rail network, with a large mixed-use transit-oriented development built around it. Several existing lines will be extended. This project is scheduled to be completed in 2020.^[6]

References[link]

1. ^ RTD Facts
2. ^ "Interim General Manager". http://www.rtd-denver.com/GeneralManager.shtml. Retrieved 2009-08-19. 
3. ^ Francis, Jeff (2009-06-25). "RTD gets interim general manager". MileHighNews.com. http://www.milehighnews.com/Articles-i-2009-06-25-211116.114125_RTD_gets_interim_general_manager.html. Retrieved 2009-08-19. 
4. ^ "RTD Board of Directors". http://www.rtd-denver.com/BoardDirectors.shtml. Retrieved 2009-08-19. 
5. ^ "RTD Facts and Figures". http://www.rtd-denver.com/factsAndFigures.shtml. Retrieved 2009-08-19. 
6. ^ Program Schedule: http://www.rtd-fastracks.com/main_31

• ^ Timeline between 1969 and 1982 provided from "RTD A History: 1969-82" published 1983 by the Regional Transportation District.

External links[link]

• RTD's official website
• Transit Alliance - A non-profit coalition of 40 local governments, business associations and citizen groups promoting expanded rail and bus transit in the Denver Metro region.
• Passenger Advocacy for Rail Transit

Spencer Swalm
Member of the Colorado House of Representatives from the 37th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 10, 2007
Preceded by	Lauri Clapp
Personal details
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Marleen[1]
Profession	insurance broker
Religion	Christian[1]

Spencer Swalm is a legislator in the U.S. state of Colorado. First elected to the Colorado House of Representatives as a Republican in 2006, Swalm represents House District 37, which encompasses the most of the city of Centennial, Colorado.^[2]

Early career[link]

Born in Colorado,^[1] Swalm attended Colorado College before transferring to the University of Colorado at Boulder, graduating with a bachelor's degree in history^[3] in 1975.^[4] He then earned a J.D. from the University of Denver in 1979.^[4]

After practicing law for over a decade,^[4] specializing in estate planning,^[3] Swalm entered the employee benefits and health insurance business in 1990 as a partner in Redstone Benefit Systems. He has served as the chair of the legislative committee of the Colorado State Association of Health Underwriters.^[4]

In the early 1980s, Swalm began writing op-ed pieces opposing government transportation subsidies and joined the Independence Institute, a Colorado free-market thinktank, eventually becoming a senior fellow.^[3] He opposed the 2004 tax measure funding the FasTracks light rail expansion.^[5] He has also served on the board of the Colorado Council on Economic Education. Politically, Swalm has been a member of the Colorado Republican Business Coalition, the Centennial Republican Forum, the Arapahoe County Republican Men's Club, and was treasurer for the Sixth Congressional District Republican Committee.^[3]

Swalm is married; he and his wife, Marleen, have three children:^[1] Byron, Lauren, and Jocelyn.^[6] Swalm has taught Sunday school and served on the missions committee of his church, Grace Chapel, and has taken several missionary trips to the Amazon Basin in Bolivia.^[4]

Political career[link]

2006 election[link]

Swalm won election to Colorado's 37th House District in 2006. He faced Centennial Councilwoman Betty Ann Habig in the Republican primary, losing to her at the party assembly,^[7] but defeating her in the party primary.^[8] He then defeated Democrat Angela Engel with just over 51 percent of the vote.^[2]

2007 legislative session[link]

In the 2007 session of the Colorado General Assembly, Swalm sat on the House Health and Human Services Committee and the House Transportation and Energy Committee.^[9] Swalm's father, Paul Swalm, had served on the Denver, Colorado city council and in the Colorado House of Representatives^[3] in the 1970s, and Swalm was assigned the same seat in the house chamber as his father.^[10]

That year, Swalm sponsored legislation that would require sex offenders to register their email addresses and other online identities with the state.^[11] After being defeated in committee, the bill was resubmitted to apply only to sex offenders whose victims are children,^[12] and was signed into law. He plans on submitting legislation to extend the program to all sex offenders in future sessions.^[13]

Swalm also sponsored successful legislation designed to encourage Coloradans to purchase long term care insurance rather than relying on Medicaid, allowing Coloradans to participate in a federal long term care partnership program.^[14]

Between legislative sessions, Swalm served on the interim Health Care Task Force^[15] and on the Transportation Legislation Review Committee.^[16]

2008 legislative session[link]

For the 2008 legislative session, Swalm plans to sponsor a measure that would create a special pass to offset state park maintenance costs.^[17][18] As part of a set of Republican health care proposals, Swalm will sponsor legislation to create a low-cost state health insurance plan and to encourage tax breaks for individual health insurance.^[19] He has also, working with Democratic Rep. Morgan Carroll, introduced legislation to extend a fund to provide financial assistance to military families.^[20][21] The bill was passed by the legislature and signed into the law by Gov. Bill Ritter.^[22]

Swalm also introduced legislation to create the "Colorado Health Plan," a low-cost health insurance program to be run by the state,^[23] but the proposal was killed in committee.^[24] Democratic House Speaker Andrew Romanoff has expressed interest in reviving the bill.^[25] Swalm also reintroduced his bill to require sex offenders to register their email addresses, which was again killed in committee.^[26]

2008 election[link]

Because of the closeness of Swalm's 2006 election in a traditionally Republican district, Democrats targeted Swalm's re-election bid in 2008. Swalm faces Diana Holland, a Democrat and Littleton School Board member,^[27] and Constitution Party candidate Brian Olds in the November general election. Swalm's re-election bid was endorsed by the Denver Post.^[28] He ultimately won with 51 percent of the popular vote, nearly 2000 votes ahead of Holland.^[29]

2009 legislative session[link]

For the 2009 legislative session, Swalm was named to seats on the House Finance Committee and the House Health and Human Services Committee.^[30] Representative Swalm worked with Democratic Representative Sara Gagliardi to promote a bipartisan measure lowering the age limit for blood donations to 16.^[31]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Colorado General Assembly profile
• Campaign website