Flatiron Flyer

Flatiron Flyer
Overview
Operator	Regional Transportation District
Garage	Platte Division, Boulder Divison
Vehicle	56 Motor Coach Industries D4500CL coaches
Status	open, construction continues
Began service	January 3, 2016[1]
Predecessors	Routes 86x, BV, BF, BMX, BX, HX, S, T
Route
Locale	Denver, North Jefferson, Broomfield and Boulder Counties, Colorado
Communities served	Denver, Anschutz Medical Campus, Westminster, Broomfield, Superior, Boulder
Start	Union Station, Civic Center Station, Anschutz Medical Campus
Via	U.S. Route 36
End	Downtown Boulder Station, Boulder Junction Station
Service
Frequency	Peak: 10 minutes Off-peak: 30 minutes[2]
Weekend frequency	Saturday: 15 minutes Sunday: 30 minutes
Daily ridership	11,000 (projected)[3]
Route map Boulder Junction Station FF4, FF6 Downtown Boulder Station FF1, FF2, FF5 Local Boulder Stops Pearl Pkwy and 49thFF6 Central Ave and Flatiron Pkwy EFF6 28th and Walnut/28th and Canyon (University of Colorado)FF4 Arapahoe and 55thFF6 Arapahoe and 48thFF6 Arapahoe and 38th/Arapahoe and MarineFF6 Arapahoe and 30thFF6 28th and ArapahoeFF4, FF6 28th and College/28th and ColoradoFF4, FF6 Broadway and Euclid (University of Colorado)FF1, FF2, FF5 Broadway and BaselineFF1, FF2, FF5 Table Mesa and 39th/Broadway and Table MesaFF1, FF2, FF4 US 36 and Table Mesa Station FF1, FF2, FF4, FF5, FF6 US 36 and McCaslin Station FF1, FF2, FF4, FF5, FF6 US 36 and Flatiron Station FF1 US 36 and Broomfield Station FF1, FF3, FF4, FF5, FF6 US 36 and Church Ranch Station FF1, FF3 US 36 and Sheridan Station FF1, FF3, FF4, FF5, FF6 Local Stops Fitzsimmons Pkwy and MontviewFF5 Colfax and Fitzsimmons PkwyFF5 Colfax and WheelingFF5 Colfax and VaughnFF5 Aurora Ct and 16thFF5 17th Pl and Aurora CtFF5 Aurora Ct and 17th AveFF5 Aurora Ct and 16th AveFF5 Quentin and 16th AveFF5 Quentin and 17th AveFF5 Quentin and 19th AveFF5 Anschutz Medical Campus FF5 Downtown Denver Stops 20th and Larimer/19th and Market FF4 18th and California/19th and Stout FF4, RTD  D ,  F , &  H  Light Rail 18th and Welton/Broadway and Glenarm FF4 Civic Center Station FF4 Union Station FF1, FF2, FF3, FF6 (California Zephyr) RTD  C ,  E , &  W  Light Rail  A ,  B  &  G  (2016),  N  (2018) Commuter Rail ←   →

Flatiron Flyer is an 18-mile (29 km) express bus line between Denver and Boulder, Colorado, traveling along U.S. Route 36. Different levels of service are available, including a non-stop from Boulder to Union Station in high-occupancy toll lanes (HOT lanes), and all-stop, which serves six park-and-rides along U.S. Route 36 in normal highway lanes.^[4] The line branches out to different destinations in Denver and Boulder. The Regional Transportation District operates the line, opened on January 3, 2016.^[5] The ITDP classified the system as "not bus rapid transit", due to the use of lanes shared with private cars along US 36, lack of street level boarding/alighting and the lack of an off-board fare system.^[6] This new system has been criticized as bus rapid transit creep.^[7]

Route

A branching route system is employed, with the backbone of the system being the HOT lanes along U.S. Route 36. High-occupancy vehicles and buses travel free in the HOT lanes, while single-occupancy vehicles must pay between $1.25 to $7.60, depending on time of day, or up to $13.68 without an electronic toll collection pass.^[8] The HOT lane will be managed to ensure that traffic will flow at 50 to 55 miles per hour.^[9] Union Station, Civic Center and Anschutz Medical Campus serve as the termini at in Denver, while Downtown Boulder and Boulder Junction are the termini in Boulder.

Due to the fact that Flatiron Flyer travels with other vehicles in the HOT lanes, the lack of street level boarding and alighting and the lack of an off-board fare system, it has been classified as "Not BRT" by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, which promotes construction of BRT systems.^[10]

Stops

There are six park-and-rides along U.S. Route 36 from Denver to Boulder, which have been dubbed "stations", that will be served by Flatiron Flyer:^[11]

• US 36 – Sheridan (1,310 parking spaces)
• US 36 – Church Ranch (394 parking spaces)
• US 36 – Broomfield (pedestrian bridge, 940 parking spaces)
• US 36 – Flatiron (264 parking spaces)
• US 36 – McCaslin (pedestrian bridge, 466 parking spaces)
• US 36 – Table Mesa (pedestrian bridge, 824 parking spaces)

These stops will have ticket vending machines, and passenger information systems.

Service

Express service between Boulder and Denver is expected to take slightly under an hour, which is about 10 to 15 minutes faster than current bus routes.^[9]

There was some opposition to the proposed consolidation of routes between Boulder and Denver. Buses along the most popular routes would come more frequently under the new service plan, but Boulder Junction would receive less service.^[12]

Proposed service plan

Headways along different routes vary based on the time of day.^[13]

History

Flatiron Flyer was constructed as part of the FasTracks program, which built six new commuter rail, light rail, and bus rapid transit lines in the Denver metropolitan area.^[14]

Widening U.S. Route 36 to accommodate the bus line was a joint project between the Colorado Department of Transportation and RTD, termed the US 36 Express Lanes Project. The highway will be widened by 40 feet (12 m) in each direction to allow the addition of a high-occupancy vehicle lane, in which the non-stop bus service will travel. The project will be completed in two phases, with the first phase beginning in July 2012 and ending in July 2015. It cost $317 million and extended from Federal Boulevard to 88th Street in Louisville, Colorado.^[15] Phase 2 of the project, anticipated to be complete by early 2016, will extend the HOT lanes from 88th Street to Table Mesa Drive in Boulder, Colorado through a public–private partnership.^[16] To accommodate the lanes, several bridges were replaced and shoulders were widened along the highway.

Fleet

RTD purchased 59 D4500CL buses from Motor Coach Industries for $35 million to be used on the line. Each bus can carry up to 57 passengers.^[17]

The University of Colorado paid $5 million over five years to place advertisements on Flatiron Flyer buses.^[18]

Criticism

Originally, the voter-approved plan called for a 41-mile (66 km) high-capacity commuter rail line running from Denver Union Station to Longmont, passing through North Denver, Adams County, Westminster, Broomfield, Louisville and Boulder.^[19] The completion of this original plan has been delayed until 2044 due to lower tax revenues and higher costs than expected.^[20][21] As an interim measure, RTD will introduce a new bus system, branded "Flatiron Flyer", traveling in high-occupancy toll lanes along US 36 between Denver and Boulder.^[22][23] The consolidation of current express service between Denver and Boulder into this one system attracted criticism from Boulder residents, since increased frequencies would be balanced with some service cuts.^[24][25][26] Additionally, the ITDP classified the system as "not bus rapid transit", due to the use of lanes shared with private cars along US 36.^[27]

References