Changes affect RTD, City of Boulder, and local and regional services

Boulder County, Colo. - Boulder County is working with community and transit partners to help address COVID-19. Changes to transit services affecting Boulder County residents as of April 14, 2020 are summarized here:

RTD Fare Collection Suspension and New Boarding Procedures

RTD has suspended fare collection on all buses and trains across the RTD system until further notice. The agency is working through processes for refunds and exchanges on applicable fare products.

A rear-door boarding and exiting system has also been implemented to provide another layer of social distancing between operators and riders. Passengers with disabilities should continue to board RTD vehicles at the front, where a wheelchair lift is available, if needed. RTD’s over-the-road coaches used on regional routes have front doors only and passengers will continue to board and deboard from the front on those buses.

To allow for social distancing on board RTD vehicles, RTD is limiting capacity to approximately 15 passengers per bus, and 20 passengers on larger buses.
Passengers are strongly encouraged to wear a cloth or homemade mask when riding public transit to help reduce the potential spread of COVID-19.

Beginning Sunday, April 19, RTD will make the following changes to service:
No printed schedules are currently available, but schedules are available at www.rtd-denver.com

Changes to Weekday Regional Bus Service

• FF2, FF4, FF6, J, LD2, LX1, LX2, Y - No service
• FF5: 2 AM eastbound and 2 PM westbound trips
• BOLT, LD3, NB, AB - Saturday schedule
• FF1 - Saturday schedule, with added AM trips. No service 12:30 a.m.-5 a.m.
• GS - Two AM and two PM trips each day
• LD1 - Two AM southbound and two PM northbound trips each day

Changes to Weekday Local Bus Service

• 206, 209, 236 - No service
• 204, 208, 225, 228, 323, 324, 326, 327, BOUND - Saturday schedule
• DASH, SKIP - Saturday schedule, with service beginning at 5:30 a.m.
• 205, JUMP - Saturday schedule, with service beginning at 6 a.m.

Changes to FlexRide Service (formerly Call-n-Ride)

Effective Sunday, April 19, all subscription-reserved trips will be suspended. All reservations will be treated as individual trips, on a first-come, first-served basis. One-time reservations may be made up to 30 days in advance. Saturday and Sunday service will operate as normally scheduled with the exception of all subscriptions being cancelled. For more information, visit www.rtd-denver.com/services/flexride.

The following FlexRide areas will have a FlexRide vehicle scheduled to leave the gate every hour starting at 6 a.m. with the last bus leaving at 5 p.m. and arriving back to the station/Park-n-Ride at 5:55 p.m. Boarding at the following stations/Park-n-Rides does not require a reservation:

• Louisville - US 36 & McCaslin Station Gate H
• Superior - US 36 & McCaslin Station Gate C

Changes to Access-a-Ride Service

Access-a-Ride will suspend 5-day advanced booking allowing customers to book for next-day trips only. Standing orders for trips are also canceled. If you need to book a trip, please call staff to book those trips still required. Both steps will reduce the demand for staff and allow us to continue to provide essential transportation for our customers. This change will remain in place until the Governor lifts the state of emergency.

If you have been diagnosed with COVID-19 or are experiencing symptoms associated with the virus, Access-a-Ride will not be able to provide you with transportation. This would apply in cases where you live at a residence where others are known to have the virus as well. You are encouraged to reach out to medical transportation providers who are equipped to provide medical related transportation.

For Access-a-Ride passengers only, RTD will offer grocery delivery from King Soopers or Safeway to your home. Customers interested in using this service must either call the grocer or food bank directly, or visit their website online, to set up the order and schedule the pickup time. Once the order has been placed, and you have a scheduled pickup time from your grocer or food bank, call Access-a-Ride reservations at 303-292-6560 and book a trip to pick up the groceries at that time. Please visit www.rtd-denver.com/services/access-a-ride for more information.

For more information, visit www.rtd-denver.com. Contact RTD directly about any questions regarding these services changes by calling 303-299-6000.

Non-RTD Service Changes

• FLEX (Boulder to Ft Collins): Beginning April 18, the FLEX route will be suspended until further notice. Passengers are encouraged to check www.ridetransfort.com/flex for updates.
• HOP (Boulder circulator): Beginning April 19, HOP will move to a Saturday schedule, suspend fare collection, and implement rear-door boarding. Passengers are encouraged to check www.bouldercolorado.gov/hopbus
• The Climb (Boulder to Gold Hill): Suspended until further notice. Passengers are encouraged to check www.viacolorado.org/services/the-climb
• Hessie Shuttle: Start of summer season delayed until further notice. Passengers are encouraged to check www.hessietrailhead.com
• Bustang and Outrider Service (CDOT inter-regional bus service): All service currently suspended until April 26. Passengers are encouraged to check www.ridebustang.com