Two people were injured Tuesday night when a Regional Transportation District bus collided with a car on East Colfax Avenue, two days after the street’s center bus rapid-transit lanes opened. It is the first crash involving a bus using those lanes.
East Colfax’s first complete section of the bus rapid transit project opened its bus-only lanes on Sunday, after two years of construction. That construction, which brought major changes to one of Denver’s oldest and largest commercial streets, has been marked by confusing traffic patterns and lines of cones and barrels along the busy road.
The new bus-only lanes run from Broadway to Colorado Boulevard, allowing bus routes 15 and 15L to use East Colfax’s center two lanes while other drivers travel in the outer lanes.
A Route 15L bus collided with a car on eastbound East Colfax at Williams Street at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday, RTD spokesperson Pauline Haberman said. Two RTD customers reported injuries, but neither was taken to the hospital, she said.
Haberman did not specify the cause of the crash, the events leading up to it or which vehicle hit the other.
The Denver Police Department did not immediately respond to questions on Wednesday morning.
When complete, Denver’s full will stretch from . Construction is expected to end by late 2027, according to city officials.
The changes on East Colfax have confused drivers, with some route-setting apps — like Google Maps — directing drivers to turn in spots they’re no longer permitted to. City officials previously said they were working with those apps to update traffic patterns.
It’s unclear whether the new traffic patterns contributed to Tuesday’s crash.
The next phase of construction will take over Colfax Avenue between Colorado Boulevard and Niagara Street.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
