RTD Unveils Holiday Merchandise Line With Colorado Designs

Wondering what to wear to a holiday party? Or unsure what to get your transit-loving relative for the holidays?

Look no further than RTD’s winter apparel catalogue, which the Colorado transportation system just dropped this week.

Red and greenish-blue are the primary colors of the sweater and scarf, with designs that include snowmen, candy canes, sleds and Christmas trees. There are other totally Colorado touches, like coffee mugs with the state flag and homages to both the Colorado Convention Center’s Big Blue Bear and Blucifer.

But RTD makes it clear those homages are just that: references.

"The Colorado-inspired apparel represents many different generic symbols from around the state," the district says through spokesperson Pauline Haberman. "The inclusion of teal horses and bears are a playful nod to Colorado’s landscape, wildlife and familiar icons."

Last year, heirs to the estate of Luis Jiménez, the creator of "Mustang" (Blucifer's official name), threatened legal action against Abstract Denver when the local company printed its own reference to the sculpture on a T-shirt, but so far, RTD has gotten no such alert.

The district says it was inspired to make the clothing items available to the public after it had some samples made for employees to wear at holiday events in 2023.

“Last year, RTD employees wore winter-themed apparel during the Parade of Lights and the agency’s Holiday Happenings events, and learned that customers wanted to purchase the winter apparel then only available to RTD employees,” the transit district explains.

RTD plans to unveil its Winter Parade Bus at the Denver Union Station Grand Illumination on November 29 before it joins the Parade of Lights on December 7. The attire “reflects the festive spirit” of that winter-themed bus, RTD teases.

In the meantime, the scarf is a deal at just $10, while the sweater costs $55 for every size except the really big ones (3X is $62 and 4X is $63).

According to the RTD announcement, proceeds from the sales will go toward future customer and community engagement efforts. And depending on the results of the vote on Ballot Issue 7A, RTD might need that money.

That ballot measure asks voters to permanently exempt RTD from the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR); RTD estimates that around $600 million of the agency’s budget could be subject to TABOR limits and possible refunds if the measure doesn’t pass.

For those keeping count, RTD would need to sell 60 million scarves or 10.9 million sweaters to generate $600 million.

Although the agency is unlikely to hit those sales numbers, the designs are cool enough that plenty will probably sell. RTD says customers should order their sweaters and scarves by December 1, with orders shipping by December 15 at the latest.