Denver Colfax BRT Corridor Study

Nelson\Nygaard developed a design for bus rapid transit on the Denver region’s highest ridership transit corridor, East Colfax, which has highest nearly seven million annual boardings, or more than 22,000 per weekday. Weekday ridership is projected to more than double by 2035.

The first phase of the project analyzed the geometric and operational feasibility of high-capacity transit. The over nine-mile corridor, from I-25 in Denver to I-225 in Aurora, generally consists of four travel lanes with turn pockets and occasional on-street parking. The team created multimodal evaluation criteria to screen center-running BRT against other options, including measures such as placemaking, safety, and economic development. All-day dedicated, center-running transit facilities were recommended, based on increased person-capacity and benefits including placemaking opportunities, support for Vision Zero through shorter pedestrian crossings, retail activation with wider sidewalks, and shorter travel times for passengers.

The second phase of the Colfax corridor study included extensive outreach, and advanced the center-running BRT alternative to 10% design within the city of Denver. The City of Denver initiated the detailed (30%) design and environmental review process for the Colfax BRT Project in early 2019.