City Council Minutes 2002 08 06 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Louisville City Council Meeting August 6, 2002 Page 6 an increase in buses would create pollution. He explained that the current bus service is not being utilized and presented Council with a written list of buses that he personally observed. He noted his observation of the low ridership of the 227 east and westbound, and of the 228 eastbound. He wondered ifRTD completed a study on the ridership of the 227 and 228 buses before proposing the DASH services. He stated that South Boulder Road is a four-lane road and better equipped to handle the frequency of buses. He voiced his opinion that the service should not be expanded if there is not sufficient ridership. John Cartwright, 120 W. Pine Street, Louisville, CO, stated that he uses the bus service several times a week. He noted that no one is proposing that the bus service along Pine Street be stopped. He asked why the service is being increased if the bus service is not being utilized. He reported that the current buses are always on time and he questioned the need for adding more buses. COUNCIL COMMENTS Davidson stated that many people question why the DASH bus service is on the City Council Agenda. He explained that a number of residents came to City Council with their concern relative to the proposed DASH service and that Council considers what the citizens have to say. He noted that no decisions have been made, nor has Council made any recommendations. He stated that a draft letter was written, but no determination has been made relative to the letter. Mayer addressed the issue raised by Jill Clements and stated that the bus stop was moved because of a citizen complaint. He stated that RTD will be looking at the issue and he urged Clements to contact RTD with her concern. Mayer clarified several issue on the bus services. He stated that the 227 currently have 42 buses in each direction. DASH will add 27 buses, a 64% increase over the 227. He noted that the 228 have 33 buses in each direction. He explained that DASH would increase the total number of buses by 36%. He stated that he had heard comments from the public that the 227 buses are getting larger. He confirmed with RTD representative, Jeff Dunning, that the 227 and 288 uses 30' buses. He explained that the summertime ridership is drastically different than the balance of the year and in the fall, when the student's return to Louisville Middle School and to the University of Colorado, the ridership would increase. He stated that at one time there was an F Bus, which just went up and down South Boulder Road and with the addition of the 227, and the loop through Pine Street, the ridership doubled. He stated that he is a bus rider and recognizes that the 227 works because it picks up people in two communities, Louisville and Lafayette, and connects to the 228 to Superior and Broomfield. He confirmed with Jeff Dunning, that the timing of the Pine Street loop is between 7-8 minutes. He voiced concern that running every other bus up and down South Boulder Road would create two different bus routes. He stated that the additional public process at the roundtable discussion should go forward. He stated that they might come up with a different alternative. He suggested dropping the letter until the roundtable discussions are held. 6