We commend the Jefferson County Commissioners and the Regional Transportation District for their taxpayer-friendly compromise over light rail service to the county government center in Golden.
The agreement will pare $36 million from the $634 million west corridor line, part of the voter-approved FasTracks project. Most important, it paves the way for RTD to apply for $300 million in federal funds for the project, which is expected to begin whisking passengers to the Federal Center in Lakewood and on to the county government center in 2013.
Jeffco commissioners had objected to RTD’s decision to pare back the originally planned double track to a single track, plus a short passing track, on the final leg to the county offices. Jeffco balked because it would preclude the five-minute rush-hour service intervals the commissioners say voters were promised in 2004. RTD, which still plans five-minute rush-hour service from Denver to the Federal Center, had proposed 15-minute service to the county offices — coupled with a promise to upgrade tracks for 10-minute or five-minute service later if ridership warrants.
Under the compromise, RTD will still pay for just a single track. But it has agreed to build a second passing track and to add a third floor to a scheduled parking garage at the government center, boosting the total capacity to 835 spaces, if Jeffco can find non-RTD sources to pay for those upgrades.
The most likely source for such funding is a special state pot that earmarked about $24 million for transit projects around the state in 2008. The cost of the proposed upgrades isn’t yet known.
The compromise ensures that RTD taxpayers won’t have to pay up front for a second track that may not be needed. But it also assures Jeffco commuters of parking facilities and service intervals adequate to meet their needs if future ridership exceeds projections.
The compromise is thus fair to taxpayers and transit riders alike.
Take a bow, Jeffco and RTD.
