RTD Service Changes Will Likely Bring Back the C Line, Disrupt Some Buses and Light Rails

The RTD Board of Directors is set to take a final vote on Tuesday, March 24, to approve interruptions to major light rail and bus routes. The service changes are required during construction maintenance projects, according to boardmembers, and would begin on June 7.

The proposed service changes would be temporary, but the timeline for how long they’ll be in place depends on RTD evaluations after they’ve been implemented, says RTD spokesperson Tara Broghammer.

“RTD cannot say how long the June service changes would last, considering all service is evaluated three times a year,” Broghammer says. “Any further adjustments may be made based on those evaluations.”

Most light rail service interruptions will be the result of scheduled reconstruction of downtown RTD light rail lines. The downtown rail repair will temporarily stop service to what RTD calls the “downtown loop,” or a circular route on the H, D and L lines where California and Stout streets meet 16th and 18th streets. Because the L Line would stop during the service changes, light rail service will likely be unavailable in Five Points as well.

More changes to light rail, bus and FlexRide schedules and routes are also proposed as route adjustments to align with rider patterns. As a result, a few bus and FlexRide schedules will change.

At the same time, RTD anticipates an influx of state Clean Transit Enterprise grants from new fees on oil and gas producers in Colorado. The new services are expected to come online this year, along with increased bus and light rail frequencies for certain routes.

The RTD Operations, Safety and Security Committee approved the proposed changes unanimously on Wednesday, March 11, sending them to the full board for its final vote.

Upwards of 1,200 people sent RTD feedback through surveys that closed on March 4. Members of the public will also have the chance to provide feedback on the suggested changes at the March 24 meeting, but only one person spoke on Wednesday. Still, a few concerns did arise during the meeting, and the board could amend the proposed changes before the final vote. Here are some highlights from RTD’s latest proposal for service changes:

Bringing Back the C Line for Good

The D Line, which connects commuters in Littleton, Sheridan and Englewood to the downtown Denver loop, will stop running temporarily on June 7, but a revival of the C Line would make sure service doesn’t stop at the stations in those southwest suburbs. However, instead of taking passengers to 16th or 18th streets, the C Line will end at Union Station

RTD Board member Chris Nicholson noted on Wednesday that the C Line is expected to stick around this time, too. RTD cut the C Line in 2022 due to low ridership, but Nicholson said RTD riders have told the board they’re eager to have the route back in the downtown loop after its temporary halt.

“We did get more comments on the C Line than any other change that we have,” he said. “It speaks to the value of that connection that we will be bringing back…letting people know that we’re not getting rid of the frequency to the downtown loop is really important.”

The 7 bus currently runs from 5 a.m. to midnight, but RTD is proposing ending the 10:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. buses, reducing late-night buses to once every hour instead of every thirty minutes.

RTD Board member Michael Guzman said that working-class Latino families from Globeville and Elyria-Swansea, two north Denver neighborhoods, rely heavily on the route and its late-night service “when folks are returning from shopping or from their retail jobs.”

Guzman said he was “very disappointed” to learn that RTD has only announced the changes via bus decals without Spanish translation or a single outreach meeting.

“This is a group [Spanish speakers] that is highly affected by this route,” Guzman said. “The 7 and the 8 [Northglenn to north Broadway] are their lifelines to the city.”

Support for Platte Valley Flex Ride

FlexRide is an RTD service for people to reserve rides from designated areas to common destinations, like Park-n-Rides, hospitals and shopping centers.

RTD is considering ending its Platte Valley FlexRide, which serves a pocket of west Denver around Empower Field, taking FlexRide offerings down to sixteen.

RTD planners said in February that an average of eight riders a day use the Platte Valley FlexRide, so they would rather cut it and expand service in areas where FlexRide is more popular, like the Denver Tech Center.

The lone speaking member of the public on Wednesday defended the Platte Valley service.

Steve Lotterman told the board that “ridership has increased pretty consistently” in 2025, going from seventy riders last March to over 190 by September.

He also argued that the daily rider average is now closer to ten to fifteen people per day based on recent data, and that he personally knows people who rely on it.

“My feeling is that you’ve got a route that’s showing a clear increase in ridership,” Lotterman said. “I would hope you would find a way to keep service on that route.”

According to survey results RTD has put out so far, Lotterman isn’t alone. About twenty people sent RTD feedback on the proposed end of the Platte Valley FlexRide, with 60 percent viewing the change negatively, according to RTD, and just 15 percent viewing it positively.