Union Station plan
You know something is amiss if the state’s leading rail and transit advocacy group (ColoRail) takes serious issue with the unfolding plan for Denver Union Station (DUS). That plan calls for the eviction from the site and/or very costly burial of the 3 connecting transit modes comprising the DUS transit hub, advertised as “convenient” in RTD’s successful FasTrack’s campaign.
This plan is anthing but convenient, nor is it a wise expenditure of funds, no matter what the source.
The driving forces at play are the city’s desire to saturate the site with tax-generating development, which will hide much of the historic station from view, and the city’s irrational obsession with extending 18th Street through the property. Is there a shortage of single-occupant, space- consuming, polluting, pedestrian-stalking vehicles downtown? We need the development to pay for burying the tracks, which we must do to accommodate the development. Get it?
While it is understandable, and desirable, to capitalize on the DUS transit hub, we must not lose sight of its (voter-approved tax increase) purpose: to offer a convenient and affordable alternative to our increasingly expensive and problematic “travel-by-auto” conumdrum. Ironically, we have far better transit connectivity at DUS right now than we will EVER have under the current proposal. Our city and region will not be served well with this plan, especially as we view into the future.
And with RTD’s well-publicized uncertainty about FasTracks finances, why is the most expensive transit infrastructure (burial) still on the table?
There are better ways for all parties to achieve their goals at DUS. All visionaries and critical thinkers who care about our transportation future should attend the Union Station Advisory Committee (USAC) meeting at RTD’s Administration Building, 1600 Blake Street, on Thursday, April 19, at 5:30pm.
We only have one shot at getting this right. Let’s not squander it!
This letter has not been edited.