RTD’s preferred route alignment that was selected in 2010 for a light rail transit system from Lincoln Station, to Sky Ridge Medical Center, the future Lone Tree Town Center down to RidgeGate Parkway.

By Patte Smith with excerpts from the RTD Scoping Booklet

The Regional Transportation District (RTD) has initiated an Alternatives Analysis (AA) and Environmental Assessment (EA) process for the FasTracks Southeast Rail Extension project. The proposed project is the extension of transit from the existing end-of-line Lincoln Station south to RidgeGate Parkway.

Representatives of RTD held a public scoping meeting on November 2 in Lone Tree to explain the proposals for transits systems to RidgeGate. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations define scoping as “an early and open process for determining the scope of issues to be addressed and for identifying the significant issues related to a proposed action.” About thirty people attended the meeting, several of them were Surrey Ridge residents.

While an alignment for the new transit extension was selected in an Environmental Evaluation process completed by RTD in 2010 (see illustration), to be eligible for federal funding, the Federal Transit Administration requires that RTD conduct a detailed AA to review various alternatives prior to selecting and going forward with a preferred alternative.

The alignment that was selected in 2010 includes a light-rail line running south from the Lincoln Station, stopping at Sky Ridge Medical Center for a “kiss and drop” which is a no parking lot destination for the light rail. The line would then cross over I-25 going east with a “kiss and drop” at the proposed Lone Tree Town Center and then continue south ending at a 2,000 car garage on Ridgegate Parkway. The proposed garage would be located on the east side of I-25 between the highway and south Havana Street (frontage road) on the south side of Ridgegate Parkway. There is currently no plan to take any transit system to Castle Pines.

Surrey Ridge residents voiced their concerns about the high volume of traffic that would be entering and exiting the garage. South Havana is the main artery for residents of Surrey Ridge to exit the neighborhood. “With Ridgegate already congested under and east of I-25, we have concerns about getting out of our neighborhood,” explained SRHOA President Harlan Pelz. “This is the exit we would use for an emergency evacuation.”

After the alternatives are evaluated, a public meeting will be held in January 2012 to present the results. Once the AA is complete the Environmental Review Process (EA) will be carried out. RTD will then hold a public meeting in October 2012 to present the findings of the EA. In November, a decision document will be submitted to the Federal Transit Administration, which is necessary for eligibility for federal funding. RTD will be applying for $75 million in federal funds, which is the maximum amount available per project from the Small Starts grant program. The cost of the project is $209 million – RTD reviews the financial plan every year to establish use of existing funds.

The RTD representatives stressed that public input is critical to making good decisions for this project. Comments and concerns can be submitted to RTD online as www.RTD-FasTracks.com and then clicking on Southeast Rail Extension tab or e-mail se@rtd-fastrack.com. The complete Southeast Extension Scoping Booklet can also be found on the web site.