Federal Boulevard BRT: 30% design done; 74 stations, 15-minute frequencies and outreach plans outlined

CDOT and Federal Boulevard BRT project staff told Adams County commissioners on Oct. 8 that the project has reached 30% preliminary engineering and that staff expect NEPA completion in the coming months and the start of Phase 1 construction in late 2027.

"We hit an important milestone earlier this summer in that we completed our 30% preliminary engineering design," said Ryan Knowles, Federal Boulevard BRT program manager. Knowles and designers showed station plans and described a phased delivery approach intended to concentrate early work where coordination with local governments and developers can accelerate sidewalk and station construction.

Key project details presented: - Service plan: two overlapping BRT routes with about 65,000 annual service hours consolidated into higher-frequency BRT service. The project team said 15-minute frequencies are expected on each route, producing 7.5-minute headways in the overlapping segment between Westminster Station and Evans Avenue. - Stations and design: the project includes 74 individual stations (38 northbound/southbound station pairs). Stations are 60-foot platform lengths with 13-inch (near-level) boarding platforms, passenger shelters designed for prevailing winds, lighting, real-time passenger information and ticket vending/validators. - Right-of-way and sidewalk work: staff showed coordination with Adams County and developers to fill sidewalk gaps and listed a Nonattainment Area Pollution Mitigation Enterprise (NAPME) partnership that funded additional sidewalk final design and ROW work in some county locations. - Outreach and equity: the team reported more than 130 outreach events, emphasizing Spanish- and Vietnamese-language materials, translation at events, Spanish-language radio, mailed postcards and targeted door-to-door engagement in business districts. They said about 60% of outreach events included translation/interpretation.

Commissioners asked about long-term station maintenance responsibilities (trash, graffiti, repairs) and whether Adams County would be asked to take on maintenance costs; project staff said they are evaluating maintenance models and will coordinate with jurisdictions on potential shared maintenance arrangements.

Schedule and next steps: NEPA review and a project environmental document were expected within the following months, with Phase 1 construction anticipated in the fall of 2027 if schedules and funding remain on track. Project staff said they would hold open houses at the end of October (Oct. 29 and Oct. 30) and continue landlord/property-owner outreach and survey work ahead of final design.