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Small concession businesses at Denver International Airport (DIA) will now pay less for Regional Transportation District (RTD) EcoPasses for their employees at the airport. EcoPasses allow unlimited rides on RTD buses and trains.
Previously, EcoPass prices for concessions businesses were based on an insurance-like model, where the more employees enrolled per business brought down the price per pass. Annually, businesses with zero to 24 employees paid $1,074 per employee EcoPass, while businesses with 25 to 249 employees paid $809 and businesses with more than 250 employees paid $632.
But on Monday, City Council passed a bill developed between RTD and DIA to bring the cost of EcoPasses for concessions employees down to $632 per employee for all concessionaires. Businesses decide for themselves how they plan to cover that cost, such as through monthly employee contributions at a reduced cost or covered as a benefit. DIA staff say they expect nearly 3,000 passes, at a cost of almost $1.9 million.
RTD CEO Deborah Johnson said the old model was a financial burden to smaller businesses at the airport.
"Recognizing that public transportation is interwoven into the communities in which we serve, it's vital that people have a means of transport to get to places of opportunity, i.e. jobs, higher learning, medical appointments and things of the like," she said during a committee meeting introducing the new plan. "Recognizing that Denver International Airport is one of the largest employers in the state of Colorado, it is imperative that we can find a means in which we can insure that people that are making their best lives possible have a means of transport."
DIA officials said they hope expanding EcoPass affordability will help the airport counteract staffing shortages across the entire airport industry, especially given DIA's distance from many parts of the city. RTD officials said they hope the program will reduce car dependency and grow ridership.
"As we prepare for 100 million passengers, that means that we're also going to need the employees at DEN to support all the passengers that are coming through," said Rachel Gruber, manager of regional affairs at DIA.
Employees who work for the airport itself are considered city employees, and have access to EcoPass discounts open to city employees. The new pricing model will apply specifically to people employed at concessions businesses within the airport who live in areas served by RTD. Individual businesses can decide for themselves whether or not to include part-time employees.
The program does not apply to independent contractors, subcontractors or businesses operating outside of the terminal and concourse, but Gruber the pricing model might expand to other businesses that operate on DIA property in the future.
Councilmember Stacie Gilmore, who represents District 11 which includes the airport, praised the program. She said Council had worked years ago to try to find a model that could help small businesses at the airport but was not able to make it happen.
"[I'm] just so excited that we're able to do this because it's going to help those small concessionaires," she said.
