Durango Transit and Road Runner Transit are partnering to provide four new routes from the Transit Center to the Durango Tech Center as public and private agencies scramble to fill holes after state funding cuts forced service cuts by Durango Transit.
The new routes were announced Monday at a transit forum held at the Durango Public Library by the Southwest Colorado Council of Governments’ Transit Coordinating Council and several private and public transit operators looking to address gaps in mass transit service.
The new routes will leave the Transit Center to the Tech Center at 7:45 a.m., 9:40 a.m., 12:50 p.m. and 4:50 p.m. and are an extension of an existing partnership between Durango Transit and Road Runner that provides seven runs a day from the Transit Center to Mercy Regional Medical Center.
The buses operated by Road Runner will accept all Durango Transit passes and transfers.
La Plata County Human Services, which issues Electronic Benefits Transfer cards for food assistance, is located at the Tech Center. The Salvation Army also opened a service center this month in the Tech Center.
The city’s Durango Transit was forced to make $1.5 million in cuts after the Colorado Department of Transportation changed its formula for how it distributes funds statewide based on an area’s total population, local transit budgets, ridership numbers and the need of the population for transit based on incomes and other equity factors.
Sarah Dodson, assistant director of transportation, said CDOT money may become available to the city because some communities around the state that came out winners when CDOT changed its funding formula have been unable to meet required local matches for funds.
Dodson also said that Durango Transit has introduced two new passes, an unlimited-ride daily pass for $3 and an unlimited-ride weekly pass for $10.
Uber, the online transit service, was targeted for criticism at the meeting, which was attended by about 25 residents.
David Galus of Buck Horn Transportation questioned the safety of the online ride-sharing app, noting an incident in Kalamazoo, Michigan, in which an Uber driver pleaded guilty to six counts of murder in a shooting spree between pickups.
No accurate count of the number of Uber drivers operating in Southwest Colorado exists, but Galus said his drivers can check on the app and see the number of drivers out on a shift.
Galus said until the arrival of Uber, the state allowed only one cab company to operate in Durango based on population, and the industry was heavily regulated, which increased costs.
“You can be out on a Wednesday night and look and see there are 20 Uber drivers out, and you know you’re not going to get one pickup, again,” he said. “We just don’t have the population to support it.”
Dodson also said Uber is a threat to mass transit and it discourages ridership on buses.
“We want to encourage public transportation as much as possible, and Uber doesn’t do it,” she said.
parmijo@durangoherald.com
