City Council Study Session Agenda and Packet 2013 05 28

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Northwest Area Mobility Study Scope of Work (SOW) November 14, 2012 STUDY PURPOSE The purpose of the Northwest Area Mobility Study (the Study) is to develop consensus among RTD, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) and corridor stakeholders, including local jurisdictions, on cost effective mobility improvements to serve the Northwest area. The analysis framework for developing a consensus should provide financial and project specificity for RTD’s FasTracks Annual Program Evaluation (APE) and resultant Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) SB 208 Report and be structured to form the basis for Alternatives Analysis/Planning Environmental Linkages Studies to the extent possible. It is RTD’s goal that upon completion of this study, we will have a prioritized list of improvements for the Northwest area of the district that has the overall support of RTD, CDOT and our project stakeholders. For each improvement on this list, the consultant team will develop base year capital and operations and maintenance (O&M) cost estimates and conduct fatal flaw analyses of technical, financial and environmental issues related to the improvements. The data gathered/developed for this study will be essential in informing future RTD decisions related to the timing for the completion of the FasTracks program that will be grounded in corridor-wide consensus among study stakeholders. This information will help RTD evaluate future federal grant funding opportunities, and will provide the private sector with helpful information for determining the feasibility of future unsolicited proposals or public/private partnerships. Once a prioritized list of improvements is developed as part of this study, including base year capital and O&M cost estimates, RTD will then conduct financial analyses [as part of the Annual Program Evaluation (APE), not as part of this study], which will reflect various implementation schedules for completing the remaining FasTracks projects (assuming no additional sales and use tax election). Specific timing for completion of the remaining FasTracks projects will be determined by the RTD Board of Directors (RTD Board) through the APE process and will be presented for public comment during RTD Board meetings in late 2013/early 2014, and through the SB 208 submittal due to DRCOG in early 2014. It should be noted that projects cannot be added or removed from the 2004 FasTracks program without approval by residents through a district-wide election. Therefore, RTD cannot include improvements that are not part of the FasTracks program in the SB 208 report to be submitted in early 2014. However if, as part of this study, RTD and our stakeholders gain consensus that providing cost effective mobility improvements in the Northwest area would require a change to the original FasTracks plan, then RTD staff will present the proposed change in scope to the RTD Board. If the RTD Board approves the proposed change, then they would have the option to include the scope change in a future election, if the RTD Board decides to pursue an election at some time in the future. RTD can also consider submitting any new projects, not part of FasTracks, to DRCOG for inclusion in the longer-term 2040 DRCOG Metro Vision Plan, to be funded outside of FasTracks revenues. 13