Friday is Earth Day on highway 36 to Denver
Apr 20th
36 Commuting Solutions E-Newsletter
April 2011
Friday is Earth Day! Try a Clean Commute:
carpolling, vanpooling, riding transit, bicycling, walking and teleworking!
The first ten people to reply to this message will receive a free round trip on RTD!
Did you know:
In this issue, we are focusing on sustainable transportation:
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RTD Transit Investments Move Forward
RTD is currently working on four projects for the U.S. 36 corridor: designing U.S. 36 queue jumps at three U.S. 36 interchanges, studying Transit Signal Priority at four interchanges, constructing a pedestrian bridge at Table Mesa, and removing the pedestrian canopy on the Sheridan Bridge structure over U.S. 36.
Queue jumps at three signalized interchanges along U.S. 36 are moving into the design phase: the Church Ranch Boulevard, East Flatiron Circle and McCaslin Boulevard interchanges are currently being re-packaged in response to the U.S. 36 TIGER/TIFIA project. Queue jumps will ultimately increase transit travel time savings by allowing buses to move through intersections quickly with designated lanes. RTD is coordinating with CDOT to include the queue jumps at Church Ranch Boulevard and East Flatiron Circle when construction commences in 2012. RTD will be responsible for queue jumps on McCaslin Boulevard.
RTD has received six proposals to study Transit Signal Priority on U.S. 36. The intent of the study is to see if a Transit Signal Priority system at certain, or all, intersections would result in decreased transit travel time, improved schedule adherence and reduced operating costs. RTD anticipates focusing the study on interchanges at Sheridan Boulevard, Church Ranch Boulevard, 96th Street and McCaslin Boulevard. The study will allow RTD to determine which interchanges will ultimately receive Transit Signal Priority as part of the U.S. 36 TIGER/TIFIA project.
Currently, the Table Mesa pedestrian bridge project is in RTD’s procurement office, which coordinates bids and proposals for RTD projects. The Table Mesa pedestrian bridge will improve mobility, pedestrian connectivity and reduce travel time delay for regional bus routes along the U.S. 36 Corridor. The new pedestrian bridge will reduce travel time for Denver-bound trips by 3-4 minutes. The pedestrian bridge will result in approximately $100,000 savings each year in transit operations.
The U.S. 36 & Sheridan Boulevard Bridge Pedestrian Canopy Removal is also in RTD’s procurement office, and will be advertised for bids in the next month. The Sheridan pedestrian canopy was installed in 1987 for RTD patrons to cross over U.S. 36 to the Westminster Center Park-n-Ride located on the south side of U.S. 36. In the mid-1990’s, RTD constructed a pedestrian bridge over U.S. 36 to the east side of Sheridan Boulevard, providing a safer and better access for RTD patrons.
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RTD Launches Smart Card Pilot Program in Boulder
In May, RTD will pilot a Smart Card program on several routes in the Boulder area. This pilot program will last two weeks, and will give RTD a preliminary assessment of the technology.
Smart Card technology, which is used by transit agencies in many U.S. cities already (Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York City, Seattle, Washington DC), will make fare collection more convenient and streamlined for RTD passengers, and will make the distribution of fare products like monthly passes easier for commuters.
Currently, RTD is looking for 850 volunteer participants for the Smart Card pilot program. For the first pilot, participants should be Eco Pass holders, and must be willing to collect and report data on Smart Card/sticker use, to share email and phone contact information for follow-up by RTD, and to record and report observations. All information collected during the test phase will be completely confidential and contact information will be destroyed at the completion of the test phase.
RTD will pilot the following routes in the Boulder area:
If your organization is interested in participating in the pilot program, please contact Chris Cruz, RTD Smart Media Customer Service Call Center Supervisor, at RTD-SmartMedia@celinainc.com or call 303-299-CARD (2273).
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Member Spotlight: Boulder Area Realtor® Association
The Boulder Area Realtor ® Association has been a member of 36 Commuting Solutions since the organization’s founding in 1998. The Boulder Area Realtor® Association represents 1050 Realtors®in the Boulder County area, and has played an active role in educating members about changes in local, state, and national policies and trends since the association was founded in 1948.
The Boulder Area Realtor® Association is a member of the National Association of Realtors ®, which recently released data demonstrating a marked preference for “Smart Growth Communities” in home buyers. A survey of over 2,000 adult Americans considering a home purchase found that 77 percent of respondents would look for neighborhoods with pedestrian connectivity, and 50 percent would rather see transit improvements than new roads and developments.
“In representing area Realtors®, the Boulder Area Realtor® Association understands the integral role transportation plays in the market,” says Ken Hotard, Senior Vice President of Public Affairs. “The U.S. 36 TIGER/TIFIA project is an essential start to building a multi-modal highway. We are proud to support the U.S. 36 Coalition as it works to improve this crucial corridor.”
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Your Guide to Commuting by Bike, Part 1: Westminster Trail System
The City of Westminster has been expanding its off-street trail network since 1985, when Westminster voters approved a sales tax to fund park land acquisition and build regional trails. Twenty-six years later, Westminster boasts a wonderful system of trails: there are over 74 miles of off-street trails, connecting to Denver metro trails and other U.S. 36 communities. This trail system provides off-street connectivity throughout Westminster, and includes three major trail systems. Below is a guide to these three major Westminster Trails.
In May, the City of Westminster will demonstrate the importance of bicycling by approving the city’s firstbicycle master plan. This plan will pave the way to expand Westminster’s extensive off-street bicycle network to include new and safer on-road facilities. The Draft Bicycle Master Plan includes recommendations on connections to the existing trail system, way-finding signage, on-street facilities like pavement markings and signage, and bicycle parking.
RTD FlexPass Program
RTD’s FlexPass program provides a flexible way for employers to promote transit to their employees. The FlexPass program provides employers with the ability to purchase as many RTD monthly passes as they need, and includes up to 20% off the purchase price. Additionally, the number of passes purchased each month can vary, making the program even more flexible.
There are three different discounts available through the RTD FlexPass program:
Employers participate in the RTD FlexPass program by signing a 12-month agreement. This agreement does not state the number of passes that an employer must purchase or the minimum amount that an employer must spend, and only establishes the discounts that the employer will receive for the duration of the agreement.
If you are interested in the RTD FlexPass program, please contact Catherine atcatherine@36commutingsolutions.org.
What’s New with 36 Commuting Solutions
The May Steering Committee Meeting will be May 10 from 7:30 – 9:00 AM at the 1st BANK Center in the Mountain View Room. Please see the 2011 Meeting Schedule and Directions.
The Bike to Work Day website is open for registration to employer coordinators. You can register your organization using last year’s login or by registering for the first time. Employer coordinators establish their organization as a network for Bike to Work Day, allowing employees to affiliate and compete against other regional organizations for participation.
The U.S. 36 Coalition has achieved a great deal, but it is our members who make us strong. We need your support to advocate for U.S. 36 and RTD FasTracks completion.
Stay up-to-date on U.S. 36 advocacy, programs and sustainable travel options by liking the 36 Commuting Solutions Facebook page: www.facebook.com/36commutingsolutions. |
Spring progress at Washington Village Boulder
Apr 20th
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Curious about Cohousing?
April 18, 2011 MIT PHYSICS NOBEL LAUREATE FRANK WILCZEK TO GIVE CU-BOULDER’S GAMOW LECTURE
Apr 18th
April 18, 2011
MIT PHYSICS NOBEL LAUREATE FRANK WILCZEK
TO GIVE CU-BOULDER’S GAMOW LECTUREMassachusetts Institute of Technology Professor Frank Wilczek, who shared the 2004 Nobel Prize in physics, will give the 46th George Gamow Memorial Lecture at the University of Colorado Boulder on Tuesday, April 26.
Free and open to the public, the talk is titled “Anticipating a New Golden Age: A Vision and Its Fiery Trial at the Large Hadron Collider.” Wilczek will describe the Large Hadron Collider, or LHC, and how it will test new phenomena and ambitious ideas. The talk will be held at 7:30 p.m. in Macky Auditorium and is intended for a general audience.
The LHC sends protons and charged atoms whizzing around a 17-mile underground loop located on the border of France and Switzerland at 11,000 times per second — nearly the speed of light. Located at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, the collider can smash particles together at energy levels seven times higher than the previous record by such accelerators.
Scientists are using the LHC to attempt to recreate conditions immediately following the Big Bang, searching for answers about mysterious dark matter, dark energy, gravity and the fundamental laws of physics. The experiments may even shed light on the possibility that other dimensions exist, according to physicists.
Wilczek says future generations may view the LHC as the defining symbol of our culture, analogous to the pyramids of Egypt. The LHC project involves roughly 10,000 people from 60 countries, including more than 1,700 scientists, engineers, students and technicians from 94 American universities. Roughly 10 faculty, postdoctoral researchers and graduate students from CU-Boulder’s physics department have been involved in LHC research and development.
Wilczek shared the Nobel Prize in physics with David Gross and David Politzer for the discovery of asymptotic freedom in the theory of the strong interaction, research he conducted as a 21-year-old graduate student at Princeton University.
Wilczek has received numerous awards, including a 1982 McArthur Fellowship “genius grant,” the 2005 King Faisal International Prize for Science and the 2003 Lilienfeld Prize of the American Physical Society. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
The George Gamow lecture series started in 1971 and honors the late CU-Boulder physics professor who was pivotal in developing the big bang theory of the creation of the universe. He also was known for his many books popularizing science.
For more information on Wilczek and his work visit the Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine at http://artsandsciences.colorado.edu/magazine/2011/04/nobel-laureate-to-deliver-gamow-lecture/.
-CU-
