If you live in Castle Rock...

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Originally Posted by b.adams

To be honest, CR never got ANYTHING from RTD in terms of service, so why half the town was paying RTD taxes was absurd anyways.

I rode the mineral to downtown lightrail for over 5 years and even rode the bus from highlands ranch to downtown for several years.

But it makes no sense to ride the lightrail from lincoln to downtown, as I can regularly drive it from Castle Rock in 35-40 minutes each morning.

If I take the lightrail, I pay $4 to park, then around $8 roundtrip for a fare for one. Then it takes 15 minutes to the PNR, then 10 minutes waiting for a train, then 10 minutes to leave, then a 38 minute trip on the train to downtown. It makes no sense to spend all the $$ and have it take over twice as long to get there.

So RTD, in its infinate stupidity is going to further reduce ridership and revenues by charging people to park at their PNR's. This will kill them, mark my words. It was already a bad deal to ride from Lincoln, now it makes no sense at all.

CR was SMART to get rid of the unfair RTD tax for getting nothing from it.
THe FREX service from CR to downtown is a lot cheaper, a lot faster and a lot better (they are actually FRIENDLY!, unlike RTD) ... and you get fee internet on the big comfortable bus ... on no stops between CR and downtown if you catch the right ones (that skip the Arapahoe PNR).

Ride FREX instead ... way better and about the same price as just parking as stupid ol' RTD.

If you buy anything in any store that is in the RTD district you will pay the RTD tax. So, many people in Castle Rock are still paying some RTD tax. In addition, if Castle Rock was part of the District, than all the Shoppers from Denver and North, who shop at the Factory Outlet Stores, would have been paying most of the tax because they are most of the shoppers.

You would have got extended bus service and future possible commuter rail from RTD if you stayed in the District and most of it would have been paid by other people in other areas which would have subsidized less populated areas like Castle Rock. I believe that RTD is very satisfied that Castle Rock withdrew, as providing service to the area would cost them much more than they receive, and they still collect RTD tax from you when you shop in the district.

Now you have your own locally run buses which are free at the bus, but are actually paid out of Castle Rock revenues which you fund with your local tax--so where is the savings??? I am not sure that Castle Rock played the winning hand.

RTD is implementing the fee to park to actually discourage people from driving from out of the district and parking and taking space from paying RTD customers because there is just not enough space for all the riders. RTD is not doing it for revenue because it will cost to maintain the system.

The fee will be a failing effort if everyone paid the fee---RTD is hoping that there are people like you who will not pay and will not take a space. If you all paid then they would have to expand the lots and build parking garages at a tremendous expense. They have less of a concern about the loss of ridership on the light rail. That is my take on attending many meetings on this issue.

I think that FREX is a great addition to public transit and I have been on it several times.
Hopefully Mountain Metropolitan Transit and the State will continue to fund this service. I would predict that Castle Rock will not remain independent and will be forced into the Mountain Transit district, if not again joining RTD.

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