Thornton hears regional transportation update; Smart Commute outlines e‑bike hub pilot and employer programs

Carson Priest, executive director of Smart Commute, told Thornton City Council that the nonprofit’s work in the North Denver metro region focuses on transportation demand management — getting people out of single‑occupancy vehicles through carpooling, transit, biking and walking.

“Smart commute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit group practicing something called transportation Demand Management, or TDM,” Priest said. He told the council Smart Commute operates on roughly a $600,000 annual budget, about 80% from grants and 20% from local and private contributions, and that Thornton’s 2026 membership dues were $3,780 run through the City of Westminster.

The presentation highlighted Smart Commute’s e‑mobility hub pilot and a loan‑to‑own e‑bike program that currently holds 15 bikes. Priest said the Denver Premium Outlets location — inside Thornton’s borders — recorded 153 total parking sessions and more than 1,100 bike parking hours since opening last summer. The pilot includes smart lockers with charging capability and an app‑based reservation system; users must complete safety training and may check bikes for up to one or two weeks.

Councilmembers asked whether those numbers were “good.” Priest called the project a pilot without a fixed benchmark: several comparable sites have higher session counts, and he expects usage to rise as the e‑bike library launches this summer and awareness grows.

Priest also described Smart Commute’s employer and residential outreach: a North Metro commuter survey, targeted outreach to about 63 apartment complexes near major RTD stations, carpool matching services, bike gap analysis and partnerships with employer programs such as an employer‑sponsored eco‑pass. He explained the Nico Pass model — a neighborhood‑scale “eco pass” based on the RTD EcoPass — which costs roughly $110 per resident per year after a $400 application fee.

Council and staff discussed NATA and DRCOG coordination, funding sources (federal, state, local and private grants), and how Smart Commute’s administrative role supports NATA advocacy for multimodal projects. Council members encouraged staff to keep pursuing grant partnerships and employer outreach as a way to boost transit mode share.

What’s next: staff said the presentation will be part of quarterly transportation updates and that councilmembers serving on regional boards will continue to advocate for projects and funding during the DRCOG TIP and CDOT 10‑year plan processes.