Core Transit asks for input on future bus route options in Eagle County
Valley, Highway 6, Minturn routes will see revisions based on passenger feedback
Zoe Goldstein/Vail Daily
One of the goals of the Eagle Valley Transportation Authority ballot measure was to add new and increased service routes throughout Eagle County for bus riders. Last week, Core Transit took a significant step toward bringing rider-oriented changes forward.
Core Transit is in the process of reevaluating its routes to promote efficiency and resilience and improve rider experience.
On Wednesday, March 12, the Core Transit board reviewed several route options that the transit agency can choose to implement going forward.
The route alternatives were designed through a process that began last summer with public outreach and included an existing conditions analysis and a travel market analysis, prioritizing building shorter trips and buses that run more frequently.
In drafting the routes, Core Transit staff took the things that rose to the top from the survey it conducted of its riders last summer, including shorter trips and higher frequency.
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The route alternatives are far from finalized. The next step will be to receive community feedback, which will then be combined with travel and transit data.
“In the next phase, there will be times when (people) have to directly choose,” said Tanya Allen, Core Transit’s executive director. “One has a shorter trip, one has higher frequency. That public feedback will help us drill down even more on these.”
The board will make final decisions about new routes in April or May, with implementation beginning next winter or later.
What matters for route selection?
Dave Levy, Core Transit’s planning manager, has spearheaded the design of the new routes. Levy’s team, plus consultants, have looked at direct impacts like route structure, bus frequency, travel time (including wait time) and the number of transfers a passenger might need to make.
The team has also examined indirect impacts, including workforce travel, community vitality (connecting people with businesses, schools), connectivity with local providers (Bustang, town buses), equity (reaching everybody, including currently underserved areas) and environmental impact.
Cost will factor in later in the process. “I think if we were to cost things out today … we would just wind up with numbers that distract the conversation, not necessarily add to it,” Levy said.
To implement many of these route revisions, Core Transit will need to expand its number of vehicles, increase its maintenance capacity to operate a bigger fleet doing more on the road and increase its staff.
New route options for Core Transit’s Valley, Highway 6 and Minturn/Leadville routes
“These are starting points,” Levy said. “They can be modified and they will be modified.”
Levy presented three alternatives to the Valley route, which runs between Dotsero and Vail.
The first option included both a local and an express bus option, each running at 30-minute frequencies. The express bus would extend down to Gypsum but then travel from Eagle to Vail, skipping the entire midvalley area. “Taken together, that is a very significant service increase over today,” Levy said.
The second option, “the simple,” would see a bus run every 20 minutes in the local pattern. “Riders don’t have to think a whole lot. They just show up and get on the bus,” Levy said.
The third option included a circulator between Gypsum and Eagle running every 30 minutes, stopping at new areas including Castle Peak and Vail Health. An express bus would then run every 20 minutes from Eagle to Vail. “Pretty much everyone is going to have to connect,” Levy said.
There are a couple of other downsides to the third option.
“The Chambers Park and Ride is already overflowing,” said Nick Sunday, board vice-chair. “I saw cars almost parked into the neighborhood there beyond the parking lot yesterday … we don’t want to centralize Chambers.”
The express route also skips Edwards and Avon.
“We know that people are going (from) downvalley to Edwards and Avon, and not going all the way to Vail,” Levy said.
“We know that we’re going to have some good stuff for some riders and tradeoffs for others,” Levy said. “That’s why this process is what it is, it’s as long as it is — it’s methodical, and we’ll get to that point where we can ultimately make the best decision.”
Levy presented four alternatives to the Highway 6 route.
First, a three-route concept with multiple options to reach Vail. Each pattern would run at a 30-minute frequency. “This is a pretty well-balanced route,” Levy said.
The three options make this version complex, and it might take riders some effort to learn. “Regular riders, especially, with three patterns can really maximize our system. They can get the best value out of our system with three patterns like that,” Levy said.
Second, another three-route option, would see a 20-minute frequency from Freedom Park to Vail. But there would be more transfers for people traveling up valley, including transfers for those coming from Edwards.
Third, a two-route concept, each running at a 20-minute frequency, with more stops. This option is “a little slower, more frequent,” than the previous two, Levy said.
Fourth, a singular, local option running every 15 minutes. “That’s almost an unheard-of frequency,” Levy said. “Easy to operate, easy to communicate, very easy to use. And at a 15-minute frequency, at that point, you barely need a schedule, you just show up because you know the bus is coming.”
On the downside, this option may not reduce crowding on buses and will be slow for passengers riding from end to end.
Levy presented five options for routes that service Minturn, Red Cliff and Leadville.
First, a Minturn circulator concept, with 30-minute service through town almost the entire day. The tradeoff is that those who do not catch the Leadville bus would need to transfer buses to go to Vail or anywhere else in the valley.
Second, a hybrid circulator concept with slightly less service through Minturn, but additional service beginning in Red Cliff that would run to Vail.
Third, less frequent service to Minturn, exchanged for direct service to Avon.
Fourth, direct hourly service from Minturn to Vail, plus an on-demand bus service in Red Cliff. This option is “probably the best balanced, but it may not meet our frequency needs,” Levy said.
The fifth option is the service that will start this summer, and includes hourly service from Minturn to Vail, plus eight daily Leadville trips, which pick up at the Red Cliff park and ride.
Core Transit staff will be surveying riders beginning this week to receive feedback on the proposed route changes.
Provide feedback via Core Transit’s survey at fp.MySocialPinpoint.com/Core-Transit-Concepts.
