🚲 Celebrate Winter Bike to Work Day! 🚲 Transportation and Mobility News

The Transportation & Mobility Department is dedicated to building a people-first transportation system where everyone of all mobility levels can get where they need to go safely and efficiently.

Mark your calendars for Winter Bike to Work Day

Pledge to ride for a chance to win prizes

Celebrate Winter Bike to Work Day on Friday, Feb. 9 and enjoy free breakfast, giveaways and events!

7-9 a.m.: Local breakfast stations will serve free food and drinks.
3-6 p.m.: Enjoy free appetizers and giveaways at the Bike Home Happy Hour, hosted at The Local.

Not commuting to work? You can still celebrate by taking your bike out for a ride, taking a walk, or participating in free events like:
— Feb. 7: Winter Bike Commuting Class
— Feb. 10: Boulder End-to-End Choose Your Own Adventure Ramble
— Feb. 14: Maintenance 101 Class

Winter Bike to Work Day webpage

Highway section renamed in honor of civil rights leader

It’s official — part of US 36 is now named the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Highway!

Earlier this January, the state passed a bill introduced by local Boulder leaders to designate this five-mile section to the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. You can view the new name on signs from either direction of the designated highway section: between Mile Marker 32 near Lee Hill Drive and Mile Marker 37 near Colorado Avenue.

City awarded grant to improve traffic signals

The City of Boulder has been awarded $1,204,000 to improve travel reliability, performance and safety on parts of five streets.

The grant will support improved regional and neighborhood travel connections through traffic signal improvements, such as traffic lights at intersections and crosswalks.

Building a more comfortable and connected network for people to travel helps the city achieve its transportation goals to be safe, be equitable, provide travel choices and support clean air. Learn more about the grant.

Community Engagement

Round two of snow and ice community engagement opens

On-demand open house and questionnaire available through Feb. 9

The city has launched its second on-demand open house and online questionnaire in both English and Spanish to collect community input on proposed changes to its snow and ice response program.

These potential changes were developed after thorough analysis of the current program, along with community input. Over 600 community members offered feedback and shared their winter travel experience during the first round of engagement earlier in 2023.

This round of engagement will focus on gathering feedback about potential changes to the program. To provide feedback, you can participate in the on-demand open house and online questionnaire through Feb. 9. Feedback on the proposed changes will help inform the final program changes, which are dependent on available resources and may occur during the 2024/2025 snow season at the earliest.

Participate in the snow and ice response review

Airport Community Conversation continues

Report shared with City Council; more information anticipated later in 2024

The Boulder Municipal Airport Community Conversation is committed to understanding what community members’ short-term goals and long-term visions are for the airport site. This includes developing community-informed, high-level scenarios for potential next steps.

Following City Council direction in fall 2023, staff refined these scenarios and explored the feasibility of near-term action items. A final report of these items is now available and will be shared as an information item with City Council at their Feb. 1, 2024 meeting. You can view the information packet, which includes the report, on the city website.

When the project team presented to City Council in August 2023, City Council also requested additional legal and financial analysis to better understand potential future scenarios. The project team is in the process of performing this analysis, which includes requesting more information from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) — a process that can take up to 90 days.

The team expects to share this legal and financial analysis with City Council later in 2024. Following this update, staff will request direction from City Council on next steps.

Projects on Iris Avenue

Wind damages pedestrian crossing signal

Strong winds earlier this January knocked down and damaged an existing pedestrian crossing signal at the intersection of Iris Avenue and Hermosa Drive/22nd Street. City staff are aware of the issue and are actively working to replace equipment as quickly as possible.

Materials are currently on order. If you discover other damaged city traffic equipment, you can submit a report to city staff via Inquire Boulder.

While this work will happen at Iris Avenue, please note that repairs are not related to the Iris Avenue Transportation Improvements Project.

Iris Avenue Transportation Improvements Project email updates

The Iris Avenue Transportation Improvements project will identify and implement ways to make Iris Avenue between Broadway and 28th Street safer, more connected and more comfortable.

Based on feedback from community members, staff will begin sending monthly Iris Avenue Transportation Improvements project emails in February. The project email will provide updates, information on engagement opportunities, and other key project information on a regular basis.

Subscribe on the Iris Avenue Transportation Improvements project email sign-up webpage.

Community Conversations Through Art

Through last summer and fall, the City of Boulder’s Experiments in Public Art program supported an artist-in-residence for the Boulder Social Streets project.

The artist, Edica Pacha, used creative methods to talk to community about their hopes, dreams and concerns for reimagining streets as public spaces. Pacha attended several community events to chat with and document peoples’ views, and to take their portraits.

The art enabled the city to share information from the community in a visual and compelling way and helped spark further dialogue about public spaces. Community input will be useful for several upcoming projects to continue to enhance public spaces. Thank you to everyone who participated!

More City Engagement Opportunities

Regional transportation updates

New RTD fares

RTD’s new equity-focused fares are in full effect! The improved fares will help make transit more affordable and simpler to use. Learn more about RTD fare changes.

Front Range Passenger Rail updated materials

The Front Range Passenger Rail (FRPR) team hosted a webinar last December to share information about the project status and upcoming planning.

The webinar video and summary are now available on the FRPR project website. The project team is also updating the FRPR project FAQs as they receive questions.

Stay tuned for another webinar in early 2024.

CO 119 Safety, Bikeway and Mobility Project

Exciting improvements are coming soon to this key connection between Boulder and Longmont, with CDOT anticipating project construction to begin this year.

In the meantime, CDOT has already completed an early action project to improve driver awareness of people bicycling, with new rumble strips and safety signage installed along the corridor.

Learn more on the CO 119 project website or watch a 5-minute CO 119 update.