[Colorado-Talk] Access On Demand: Important Upcoming Meeting

[tkeenan79 at gmail.com]

Hi everyone,

On this coming Wednesday, July 16, at 5:30 p.m., the RTD Operations, Safety
and Security Committee is supposed to discuss Access on Demand. This is a
Zoom meeting; you can register here:

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_SCRpno9WRMuSpZEWms59AA#/registra
tion

The full RTD Board is supposed to vote on this on July 29, so this is our
last chance to speak up. Because right now, the recommendation is still to
cut the service area and hours to correspond with Access-a-Ride and to
implement a fare of $6.50 per trip, with LIIV program enrollees paying half
that. The current 60 trip limit would remain the same, but the subsidy per
trip would be reduced to $20.

Additionally, they still maintain this utterly pointless and
counterproductive recommendation to force new applicants to “actively” use
Access-a-Ride for 90 days before they can enroll in Access On Demand. I have
no idea what “actively” means in this context. This is despite the fact
that Access-a-Ride costs RTD 80% more per trip than Access On Demand.

So, we’ve got our work cut out for us, and unless you want to see these
changes implemented, we all need to be there, virtually at this meeting on
July 16, but in person for the full Board meeting on July 29.

Let’s raise our voices and make sure they hear us!







Here’s a fact sheet that Mary Henneck created that shows the current
numbers for Access On Demand and how management’s urgency to severely cut
this program is misplaced.



-----Fact Sheet----





RTD CEO Debra Johnson has spent the past year leading an aggressive campaign
to dramatically scale back

Access on Demand (AOD)-the most effective, affordable, and rider-preferred
paratransit service in the

Denver metro area. Alongside former staffer Fred Worthen, CEO Johnson has
repeatedly framed AOD as

financially unsustainable.

This narrative doesn’t hold up to scrutiny.

While costs increased when AOD expanded from a limited four-zip-code pilot
to a full regional program, that is

expected growth. Now, the data shows those costs have stabilized. According
to data from RTD staff member

Erin Vallejos’ “Preferred Scenario” presentation on June 30, 2025, AOD is
projected to have 0% cost growth

from 2024 to 2025-and will finish the year nearly $500,000 under budget. The
numbers speak for themselves.

The Numbers

AOD Budget

Detail 2024 Amount 2025 Amount

Original Approved

Budget $13,814,441

Additional

Approved Funding $2,000,000

Total Approved

Budget $15,814,441

Actual/Projected

Spend

(per Vallejos) $15,300,000 $15,329,785

Variance (Under

Budget) ($484,656)

Growth Rate 0%

Despite these strong indicators of stability and fiscal responsibility, CEO
Johnson is advancing a proposal to

cut the AOD program by 36.5% (just short of her requested 40%) as soon as
October 2025.Unlabeled graphicEven more baffling: the plan shifts more
riders to Access-a-Ride, a program that costs 80% more per

trip-undermining both budget goals and service quality.

>From the May 28, 2025 Board presentation by Erin Vallejos:

Program 2024 Annual Cost 2024 Trips Cost/Trip

Access-a-Ride $53,000,000 500,000 $106

Access on Demand $15,300,000 685,000 $22

The Impact on Riders

The proposed cuts would create extreme financial burden on AOD riders-and
the impact is deeply human.

According to RTD’s own June 30 “Preferred Scenario” presentation, AOD
riders would bear nearly $5 million in

new costs, including:

Increased fares $4,223,160

LiVE discount ($239,220)

Subsidy reduction $931,620

Total cost to AOD riders $4,915,560

And that’s not all. The proposal also calls for cutting approximately
34,250 trips affecting those outside the

ADA-mandated service area.

Trip reduction estimate

2024 AOD trips 685,000

% Trips outside ADA service area 5%

Proposed AOD trips cut 34,250

The Wrong Direction

RTD leadership has failed to:

1. Provide transparent, data-backed justification for cutting AOD.

2. Acknowledge the real-life impact on thousands of riders who rely on the
program for work, medical

appointments, social connection, and basic independence.

Despite many hundreds of public comments from riders, caregivers, and
advocates, RTD has not engaged with

their concerns.Let’s be clear: budget lines don’t capture lived
experiences.

● How many people will lose their jobs because they can’t get to work?

● How many medical appointments will be missed?

● How many people will be further isolated from their communities?

This is a False Choice

RTD is pitting two vital programs-AOD and Access-a-Ride-against each other.
That is not necessary and not

fiscally sound. Cutting AOD and shifting riders to Access-a-Ride doesn’t
save money. It increases per-trip

costs, reduces flexibility, and worsens service delivery for people with
disabilities.

To summarize, cutting AOD:

● does not reduce paratransit costs,

● does not improve Access-a-Ride, and

● effectively guts a high-performing, cost-effective service that many
riders depend on.

Conclusion

RTD must reconsider this proposal. Riders, taxpayers, and advocates are not
asking for favors-they’re asking

for facts, fairness, and a commitment to proven solutions. Access on Demand
works. It’s efficient. It’s under

budget. And it must be protected.



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