To save about $634,000 a year, RTD is proposing to reduce some midday and evening light-rail service beginning in January.
Regional Transportation District planners told the agency’s board Tuesday night that because of low ridership, they propose to halt weekday E line service between Lincoln Avenue and Union Station from 9:54 a.m. to 2:17 p.m.
C line service between Mineral Avenue and Union Station would operate during the morning and afternoon rush hours but would convert to a rail shuttle between Union Station and the I-25/Broadway station from about 9:40 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Reducing midday service on the C and E lines means about 648 passengers would have to transfer trains at I-25/Broadway, but it would save about $563,400 a year, said Bill Porter, RTD’s route planner.
Transfers necessitated by the midday cuts could lead to platform waits of between 2 1/2 and 10 minutes.
The agency also proposes to get about $282,000 in savings by “fading out” C and F service earlier in the evening than now — leaving nighttime riders with 15-minute frequencies on the D, E and H lines.
Offsetting the anticipated savings, RTD plans to stage extra trains during rush hours to help clear crowded platforms caused by breakdowns or delays. That will cost an extra $211,000 a year.
The agency will hold public hearings in coming weeks.
