Lakewood resident Alisha Eversole and her husband recently moved from Denver, where they used the light rail for any trip that wasn't walking distance.
But although the transition from city to suburban life has been a bit bumpy, she said, one facet hasn't changed: She can still take the light rail for those longer trips.
"Having the W Rail readily available almost makes me forget that I'm no longer living in an urban area," Eversole said.
It will be three years in April since the W Rail carried its first riders up and down the corridor. Years of planning, construction and development finally brought the completion of the first of RTD's FasTracks projects. There are 11 stations along the line.
Now, with the East Line out to Denver International Airport and the Gold Line to Arvada and Wheat Ridge nearing completion, the W Rail is a window into the future for many communities.
With a current W Rail ridership of about 12,500 weekday ridersRTD is still finding ways to fine-tune service for riders.
"It is not uncommon for us to re-evaluate service changes that we instituted around opening of rail lines at the request of our customers," wrote Tina Jaquez, RTD public relations manager, in an email interview. "Many times we receive feedback from our riders that indicates the changes we made with the new rail line do not work well for the community. So we take a look at that and make further adjustments after a line opens."
When the line first opened, many residents were concerned about changes in bus routes. RTD held several meetings to make the necessary adjustments.
"Initially, I think ridership was a little less than they (RTD) were expecting, but it was really starting to build going into 2014," said David Baskett, a traffic engineer with Lakewood. "The changes they made in the fare structure also helped increase ridership."
The fare changes went into effect Jan. 1, and now allow riders to purchase day passes that allow for unlimited rides, or one-way tickets for single use. There are also monthly and annual passes for frequent riders.
Jaquez said RTD is happy with the ridership numbers on the line.
Lakewood is still working on improving its own infrastructure, or connections to the stations, to encourage more people to use the line, Baskett said. Work is underway to add sidewalks to many neighborhoods, and the city also wants to improve bicycle paths to the stations.
Eversole and her husband, who live near the Oak Station, said there is a serious lack of sidewalks and functioning streetlights leading toward Colfax.
"Making it more continuous and easy --; all that helps everyone," Baskett said.
One of the clearest signs of the line's success is the increase in development along the line, according to Lakewood and RTD officials.
"There's no doubt that line has been a game-changer," said Robert Smith, Lakewood's economic development manager. "We're seeing a lot of apartments along the line, which is important because the need for housing is going up and we have more millennials coming in."
The Eversoles hope the line will bring in more pedestrian-friendly businesses.
"We hope that the line will motivate business owners to branch out to our neck of the woods," she said. "We could really use a coffee shop within walking distance."
Projects like Metro West's Lamar Station Crossing, Zephyr Line Apartments and West Line Flats are all transit-oriented developments that developers hope will bring more residents to the city.
However, because the line runs through many Lakewood neighborhoods, this kind of progress isn't necessarily welcomed by residents.
"Our neighborhood has been very involved in housing projects, because we knew this would be happening with the light rail," said Paul Ditson, president of the Eiber Neighborhood Association, during a recent public meeting about a senior housing project coming to the area. "We're one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city --; Eiber has been around before Lakewood was even a city."
But for people like the Eversoles, who are looking for a new place to put down roots, the line has been a significant boon.
My husband and I use the rail every day that we go to work and school," said Eversole. "We're extremely pleased to see that the city of Lakewood, and its citizens, are meeting the needs of the community by revamping Colfax and creating places that our family wants to go to."
from Lakewood Sentinel - Latest Stories http://lakewoodsentinel.comhttp://lakewoodsentinel.com/stories/Ridership-on-W-Rail-in-Lakewood-climbs-with-increasing-development,206290?branding=15
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