The East Colfax Bus Rapid Transit project is currently in the design phase and part of this step requires figuring out what parking will look like along the corridor and nearby side streets when the line is in use years from now.
Proposed parking rule changes have been submitted and now residents are invited to give feedback on the proposed changes and add markers on an interactive map where they think parking changes should be implemented.
The planned BRT route will run from Broadway to Yosemite Street with the Colfax Lynx riding in center lanes designated for bus-only use. To implement the project, parking will be impacted on East Colfax and in the surrounding side streets with the biggest impact occurring between Broadway and Colorado Boulevard and between East 17th Avenue and East 13th Avenue.
Because of the impact, a curbside access plan is in the works and that plan will dictate curbside and parking management policies, along with identifying any possible new recommendations.
Currently, these are the proposed general parking changes:
- All time-limited parking will be three hours instead of two or one hour.
- Time-limited parking on the side streets will be in place from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Paid parking on East Colfax will have a two-hour maximum from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- All parking currently limited for 30 minutes will be changed to loading zones, which will not serve as short-term parking.
There's also changes to the unrestricted parking to the north and south of E. Colfax. These areas will be changed to time-limited parking:
Between E Colfax Avenue and 16th Avenue
N Washington Street
N Marion Street to N Lafayette Street (2 blocks)
Franklin Street
N Williams Street to York Street (6 blocks)
Filmore Street to Milwaukee Street (2 blocks)
Steele Street
Monroe Street
Between 16th Avenue and 17th Avenue
N Clarkson Street
N Downing Street
N Lafayette Street to City Park Esplanade (12 blocks)
Between E Colfax Avenue and 14th Avenue
N Emerson Street
N Corona Street
N Marion Street to Steele Street (20 blocks)
Madison Street
Between 14th Avenue and 13th Avenue
N Clarkson Street to N High Street (12 blocks)
Garfield Street
So far, the BRT team has received 26 contributions with about 10 comments. So far, these indicate residents aren't pleased with proposed changes.
One person said only handicap or loading parking should be allowed on the corridor, considering the purpose of the BRT and recent rezoning of Colfax is to promote a pedestrian friendly environment.
Other people have issues with the parking regulations along the side streets that are mainly residential. One person said having timed parking in front of their home will reduce their property value and cause inconveniences and another person said residents should be exempted from paid parking, again considering that they live there.
Under the proposed plan, residents can apply for parking permits that will allow them to stay parked past time limits but they won't apply to paid spaces.
It's unclear when the survey will end, so if you want to have your say, get your responses in soon.
The BRT project team will host a town hall on Feb. 28 from 5-8 p.m. at the Carla Madison Recreation Center, 2401 E. Colfax Ave. Childcare will be available for $2 until 7:30 p.m. and Spanish interpretation will also be available. The town hall won't focus specifically on parking but instead will be about the overall project.
