Wally Pulliam suggested to his fellow RTD board members last month that they take a hike.

Specifically, he wanted them to take a walk behind Union Station, to feel with their own two feet the difficulties that future FasTracks riders will experience because of changes RTD is making to long-held plans.

For years, planners envisioned the historic station as the hub of the regional transit system, featuring easy transfers of just several steps between light rail and commuter trains.

Travelers bound for Denver International Airport would tote their bags across a simple station platform to change trains. Buses would be a bit farther away, but still convenient.

But economic reality hit.

Last fall, RTD chose a private master developer for the station who plans to place the light-rail station 2 1/2 blocks out in the valley, right up against the freight train tracks. RTD says it can't afford the original plan.

The RTD board agreed with Pulliam to walk the walk, but the outing was canceled.

The reason? Bad weather.

The irony wasn't lost on Pulliam, who represents the Arvada area on the 15-member board.

"We're going to be asking our riders to take that walk in all kinds of weather," Pulliam said. "But they decided it was too cold, too miserable, whatever, it just wasn't a good day to take a walk."

Mike Rowe, of Citizens for Commuter Rail, said separating the train lines will have huge consequences for the potential success of Union Station.

"No traveler is going to want to walk that distance at grade in inclement weather, carrying backpacks and dragging luggage," Rowe said. "The negative impact of that physical arrangement on developing future ridership will be off the charts."

Other forces are blowing in on the 12-year FasTracks program to shape it into a different look than the $4.7 billion plan that was presented to voters in November 2004.

Some changes are driven by rising costs and the need to trim things to stay within budget; some are being dictated by third parties, such as railroads, beyond RTD's control.

For example, in the year after the vote, railroads decided they would no longer allow any light-rail transit to operate next to their big, heavy freight trains - although RTD's Southwest Corridor light rail to Littleton has run for nearly seven years without incident alongside one of the busiest freight corridors in the state. Railroads also want to be shielded from lawsuits if they allow RTD to run heavier commuter rail next to their tracks.

Call it sidetracks, the changing face of FasTracks.

In ways both substantial - the elimination of convenient cross-platform transfers at Union Station - and minor - building privacy fences for homeowners along tracks in place of noise walls - plans that voters saw when they passed FasTracks are being sidetracked.

Plans may still change

RTD told the public leading up to the successful sales tax vote in 2004 that the specifics of each FasTracks project weren't carved in stone. "All improvements will be subject to the results of the final environmental process," the plan notes in at least 11 places.

Yet, even after that final process, plans might not be solid.

The West Corridor light rail, the first FasTracks project out of the chute, already had a completed environmental study at the time of the vote. Yet, it is undergoing cutbacks. RTD has proposed $113 million in trims to the line - through Denver, Lakewood and Golden - and says it is still over its $511.8 million budget.

Some of the downgrades in the plans since the public vote:

• Opening-day train schedules on the West Corridor between the Denver Federal Center and the Jefferson County Government Center were reduced to every 15 minutes instead of every five minutes. RTD projects the reduced service will cost it 300 daily riders.

• As a byproduct of the service reduction, RTD will build only a single track between the federal center and Jeffco complex. That means service can't be built up to five-minutes frequencies in the future without adding the second track.

• The light rail will go over Sheridan Boulevard on a bridge north of 10th Avenue instead of staying at ground level and rebuilding Sheridan to bridge over the tracks. Residents wanted the original plan to address traffic problems on Sheridan.

• RTD will reduce the number of security cameras along the West Corridor.

• Instead of four-car station platforms, the West Corridor will have stations built for three- car trains. This is at a time when RTD's policy is to build four-car platforms, even retrofitting the T-REX stations for the added service.

• The Gold Line serving Arvada and Wheat Ridge was planned for light rail but could end up using larger electric commuter rail trains on existing tracks or electric streetcars through neighborhoods. If streetcars are chosen, a study shows travel time to downtown Denver would jump to 41 minutes from 25 for traditional rail.

• RTD originally planned to build drainage systems to handle flooding from a 100-year storm, a high level of prevention. But now, RTD has scaled back its standards for the West Corridor to a five-year storm design and could extend that policy to other corridors.

Representatives of other corridors have seen these belt-tightening moves on the West line and are concerned about what that means for their projects. But the changes aren't being happily accepted along the West Corridor, either.

The 100-year flood plain crosses the light-rail path on 13th Avenue west of Wadsworth Boulevard. More frequent storms, such as the five-year variety, would send water across the tracks in many locations.

"During those events, the train would be shut down for a period of time," said Dave Baskett, Lakewood's transportation planner. "If it was bad enough, the tracks might be damaged."

Paying the difference

Even some parts of the West Corridor that will be built as planned are only staying that way because they were rescued with outside money after RTD wanted to cut them.

Setting a precedent for other FasTracks corridors, RTD has offered to restore some items it says it has to cut on the West Corridor if cities or other parties are willing to pay the difference instead.

In two cases, Denver has agreed to pony up money to restore RTD-proposed cuts.

Denver will contribute up to $5 million to keep four pedestrian bridges in the plan as FasTracks passes through Lakewood Gulch and Sanchez parks. RTD wanted to eliminate the bridges to save money but agreed to split the cost with Denver.

Denver also has agreed to pay the difference in order to keep the original concrete paving for bike paths along the West Corridor. RTD proposed changing to less costly asphalt.

Whatever changes are made, says RTD's FasTracks team, the agency's goal of completing a regional rail system remains the focus.

"We have to look at the program from the big picture: We are here to provide transit and to provide what was outlined in the FasTracks plan, and we're going to do it," said Pauletta Tonilas, FasTracks spokeswoman. "A lot of this is just smart value-engineering items that are more cost effective for the program. You could look at it as a downgrade, but you could also look at it as a more effective way of doing a corridor.

"The end user will never notice many of these things when the corridors are opened."

RTD chief Cal Marsella says the Union Station change is for the better. Plans are in the works for a bus concourse under a future extension of 17th Street to connect Union Station's commuter tracks with the remote light-rail platform.

It would have moving sidewalks enclosed from the weather. "The bottom line is, the world has changed a lot since the vote," Marsella said.

The new arrangement for transfers works better for Denver's plans for new development. Denver wants to push 18th Street, which now ends at the station, down into the valley for more public access.

"This will meet regional mobility needs and city redevelopment plans with the financial resources we have, as best as we can," Marsella said.

Not everyone on board

Even so, the plan to separate the transfers between light rail and commuter rail stands out as having the most impact on riders.

"When I was out selling FasTracks to voters, it was basically going to be a cross-platform transfer," RTD board member Pulliam said. "What's coming out is a time-consuming walk between the two. It's not a convenient system."

Some transit fans say it's essential that Union Station have the train lines conveniently located next to each other.

"That's what was sold to the voters," said Jon Esty, president of the Colorado Rail Passenger Association. "We say all the major modes have to be located on the station property."

For Esty to be at odds with RTD is notable. Earlier this month, he was one of three individuals and two organizations RTD honored with an award called Champions of Transit for their dedication to the growth and success of RTD's system.

Now, Esty is saying RTD's Union Station design will cost more down the road and limits options for transit expansion.

Rowe, of Citizens for Commuter Rail, which has been advocating rapid transit along the Boulder-Denver corridor for nearly 10 years, said it is "simply unacceptable" to separate the two train systems so far apart.

Right now, the light-rail platform is right next to the passenger train tracks. Moving light rail more than two blocks away is "a giant step backward," he said.

"The irony is that at the existing train station, it's all there right now," Rowe said. "I'm saying what's wrong with this that we have to tear it all up to improve it. In my opinion, it's a project that has just run amok."

But even with moving walkways and cover from the weather, the new plan can't replace a simple walk across the platform.

"People would say you'd walk this far if this were an airport," added Esty. "But this is not an airport. What about the mom going to the airport with two kids?"

Jim Graebner, co-chair of the citizen-based Union Station Advisory Committee to RTD, said the most important thing is to maintain the functionality of the system, regardless of where things end up on the ground.

"If it were a perfect world, I'd do it differently," Graebner acknowledged. "For those people going to the airport from the light rail, that has an impact. Union Station itself may become less utilized and less of a hub because of less pedestrian traffic going through it.

"I'm confident we'll make it work. It's healthy to have a lot of good debate on how we design and build it. We're going to come out all right."

flynnk@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5247

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