Comments on: Possible Funding for Colfax Streetcar?

By: Troy

Troy — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 23:50:05 +0000

Mr Romer had an Op Ed piece in today’s Post.

By: Saint Facetious

Saint Facetious — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 14:36:00 +0000

Please please please let this project pass. And I’m sure it would be easy enough to extend the route on either side (to Invesco or to I-225) after this route gets built. Of course, it would be great if it could link as many different rail lines as possible, making it not only better transit on Colfax but also a more convenient way to transfer lines.

By: Nate Owens

Nate Owens — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 09:13:24 +0000

I like the sound of a railcar for Colfax (Broadway too for that matter). We should also note the effect that the railcar line (streetscape) will have for traffic speed. If I was driving and saw a streetcar I’d probably slow down and take a gander. Might make Colfax a bit more livable a street… Huh? It could happen. I also think that extending it all the way east may be extreme/overambitious; however, there’s potential for the eastern stretch to become more dense, and more economically and culturally fit as a result.

By: Troy

Troy — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 02:57:47 +0000

Hey Glenn,
You are correct, Capitol Hill residents probably won’t ride the street car out to the $1.5/scoop Chinese restaurant on Oneida and Colfax, but those of us who live out here often want to travel somewhere else like say downtown. Fastracks is mostly about getting suburbanites downtown. This and hopefully more like it are transportation options for Denverites (and neighboring city citizens).

By: MCM

MCM — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 23:06:40 +0000

This post reminded me of the earlier entry on Beyond Fastracks: http://denverinfill.com/blog/2008/05/beyond-fastracks-vision-for-denver.html.

That post brings up the point that most of the current light rail lines and those included in Fastracks do little to serve residents within Denver. Their plans include the Colfax line and possible extensions along denser corridors.

While streetcars can travel in traffic lanes, performance is greatly improved when dedicated lanes are provided, particularly in heavily trafficked areas. Streetcar lanes could be shared with buses, however. While there should be no question about removing parking or travel lanes to put in a streetcar (each vehicle can carry far more people than can be parked along a section of road), el gato raises an excellent point: pedestrian and bicycle improvements must also be integrated into streetcar plans to make the stops easy to get to from the surrounding neighborhoods.

Eleanor—SF has three types of rail transit: cable cars, light rail (in a subway downtown and above ground further south and west), and streetcars (along Market St. and Embarcadero). The streetcar and light rail tracks are connected so that the same maintenance facilities can be used.

By: Norm

Norm — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 19:54:39 +0000

This project would be pretty hip for a city like Denver as it continues to expand and make the entire metro area more accessible from all corners.

Also to those asking about the length of the route, I believe that the distance is set as it is to draw in more revenue. The Denver Post article states that $4 per registration in a one mile radius from the streetcar would be filtered to the project.

With that said, in order for this project to be successful, it must include more of the metro area and should also run further west to achieve that.

By: el gato

el gato — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:25:55 +0000

This plan seems like a good start. If the Auraria-Anscutz line proves successful, extending it to the I-225 LRT station would be the next logical step as the west corridor LRT is only 2 blocks from Colfax.

I would like to see some plans for sidewalk improvements included with this proposal as some areas of East Colfax are known for their narrow, crowded sidewalks.

By: BeyondDC

BeyondDC — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:54:25 +0000

> why is a streetcar any better than a bus?

1. Trains induce good (walkable) development in a way that buses do not. Building a streetcar on Colfax will support efforts to revitalize it as a quality urban corridor.

2. All other things being equal, trains get higher ridership than buses because lots more people are willing to ride them.

3. Trains are more comfortable to ride than buses. This is a big deal. One of the main reasons that more people are willing to ride trains than buses is that gliding along a rail offers a much smoother ride than rumbling along on tires. It is not just the “cool” factor; trains offer real, concrete improvements in quality of ride.

4. Trains have higher capacity than buses, and can be coupled to increase capacity even more. This means that on high ridership corridors operations are improved, because you don’t have to pay so many drivers, can use fuel more efficiently, and don’t have to worry so much about bunching.

5. Trains are powered by electricity, which is cleaner for the environment (especially if your electricity doesn’t come from coal).

… If those 5 reasons aren’t enough, Here is a list of 36.

By: dave

dave — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 03:57:36 +0000

i am not sure i understand why lightrail is separated from traffic but streetcars have to be stuck in it. the green line in boston is essentially a trolley, but has a separated right of way. how would you classify this route? also, I think broadway has been able to maintain its main street character better than colfax which seems overrun with gas stations and fast food joints. is the redesign of south broadway allowing for the future possibility of streetcars?

By: Glenn

Glenn — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 03:42:53 +0000

I’m a little conflicted on this one. Streetcars do have the “cool” factor, and will undoubtedly draw development and more density to good parts of Colfax. I’m not convinced, however, that it needs to go all the way out to Fitzsimons. Once you get east of Colorado – all the way out to Quebec – the neighborhoods along Colfax are largely single family residential, very different than Capital Hill and City Park. There aren’t the cultural attractions and, by and large, there isn’t the space – until you get much further east – to put in more dense developments.

I’ve always liked the idea of a streetcar going out Colfax to Colorado, then heading south Cherry Creek and back to downtown (somehow) through Capital Hill. I spend quite a bit of time in Portland, and like their streetcar for how it winds through the city, hitting areas that are more densely populated.