To preserve Colorado’s quality of life for those who live here, attract tourists, and remain economically competitive—Colorado must have an affordable, fully multi-modal, customer-focused, and well maintained transportation network. And above all, our transportation network must prioritize safety as it moves people, goods, and information. This is not only critical for Colorado’s long-term economic growth and for community health, it also impacts Coloradans’ day-to-day commutes and well-being. As governor, I will ensure that Colorado’s transportation network is not only preserved but also grows to match our modern needs.
Fixing Our Roads: Saving Commuters Money and Reducing Time Lost Sitting in Traffic
Congested roads cost Coloradans not only time but their hard-earned money. Reports show that Coloradans lose $11.4 billion per year from their pocketbooks due to congested highways and deteriorating roads. In Denver, for example, sitting in traffic costs one driver $1,675 per year, and 67 hours in lost time. And the average driver loses $831 annually on vehicle costs and maintenance due to poor road conditions. We must reduce productivity-killing congestion and get Coloradans moving again. And we can’t
ignore how our eroding roadways take more out of Coloradans’ wallets each year.
The recent closure of the U.S. 50 Bridge connecting Montrose and Gunnison—causing months of closures and choking access to the Town of Gunnison—shows how the loss of one bridge, highway, or road can disrupt daily lives and cause major impacts to a community. The Gunnison bridge closure underscores just how critical it is to maintain and take care of the transportation infrastructure we have. Recent rankings show Colorado’s road quality is falling—a trend we must not allow to continue. We must capitalize on and leverage recent transportation funding accomplishments like H.B. 21-260 to ensure that our infrastructure is well-maintained, safe, and operational. As governor, I will ensure that road and bridge repair—including pothole filling, resurfacing, and new safety improvements—is a top priority.
A Robust Multimodal System
Colorado’s transportation network cannot rely solely on cars. For a state with our population and topography, we must prioritize moving people, not cars. For our growing population, we must invest in all modes of transportation. Transit has tremendous benefits not only in congestion reduction but in cost savings to commuters, and in meeting our air quality goals and reducing air pollution. We must continue and expand innovations like the successful Bustang intercity bus service, bus rapid transit routes, dedicated transit and ride-sharing lanes, and rail connections along the Front Range and mountain communities to provide clean, affordable, and fully connected options. And we must do so in a way that captures the specific needs of each region and community.
Transit ridership has had challenges post-pandemic, with Regional Transportation District (“RTD”) ridership at almost 40% of pre-COVID levels. As governor, I will partner with RTD to work to bring ridership to capacity. We will see the fullest benefit in congestion reduction and air quality improvement by investing in buses and trains. I will also push for greater connectivity between Bustang routes and RTD lines as well as support greater innovation and collaboration between rural transit agencies, RTD, and the Colorado Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) to provide full connectivity and more options for all Colorado commuters. As part of this, we will make sure we think through and support innovative last-mile solutions like car shares, free connectors, and strategically located bike rentals.
And as the Trump Administration pulls back federal transit grants and other critical transportation funds, we must continue to push back. That’s why I sued U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for unlawfully withholding transportation funds by attaching coercive and illegal requirements on Colorado. But the state should also develop and deploy strategies to ensure Colorado’s rural transit agencies—those that rely on federal support the most—aren’t harmed. In the absence of federal leadership, the state must step up more to ensure rural transit agencies don’t backslide in transit services offered.
Electrifying our Transportation System
The transportation sector nationally accounts for almost 30% of the United States’ greenhouse gas emissions. We must continue to shift our state’s transportation away from combustion technology towards clean, higher efficiency electric vehicles, both personal and commercial. My administration will do this both by continuing to fight for the federal funding we have been promised, but also through state purchase incentive programs.
But electric vehicles only work if the charging infrastructure exists to support them. To make sure that our state maintains and expands its charging infrastructure, I will partner with homebuilders to support in-home charging options, seek collaborative opportunities to promote businesses that provide office based charging stations, and coordinate with other states across the mountain west to make sure that our highways and cross border roads have thoughtfully placed charging stations so that the western road trip is easily doable based upon today’s charging ranges. This will require collaboration and coordination with other Western governors to ensure charging infrastructure doesn’t stop at the Colorado border.
Making Good on Commitments to Coloradans
Too many taxpayers have lost faith in government because it continues to fall short on its promises. Boulder County taxpayers have been paying for a rail connection to Denver for years, yet this rail line is still not a reality. It’s time to get shovels in the ground and deliver on this decades-old promise. As governor, I will prioritize and advance recent achievements to deliver this line. And I will push for greater support and collaboration between CDOT, RTD, and the Front Range Passenger Rail Authority to deliver on this commitment to the taxpayers.
Safe and Walkable Streets and Neighborhoods
We must prioritize a transportation network that supports safe and walkable communities—one in which traffic accidents are reduced, transit is incorporated in design planning, and people and children can safely walk, ride, or bike to work and school. We should build on and further advance innovative design and planning concepts and funding, to build the roads we need that safely accommodate all modes of transportation—one that minimizes accidents and reduces injuries, improves and widens sidewalks and crossings, and advances safer streets in our communities.
Protecting our Air Quality and Committing to Environmental Justice
We cannot ignore the impact that transportation has on our air, communities, and quality of life. The top source of emissions harming our air is transportation. Any path to clean air must include combating harmful tailpipe emissions that dirties our air. Colorado must continue its progress—investing in greater incentives for ride-shares, high-occupancy vehicle lanes, ensuring transportation planning principles incorporate clean options like biking and walking, and building new dedicated transit and bus lanes. And when the federal government stepped back from supporting clean electric vehicles, I challenged the federal government, suing the Trump Administration for illegally withholding electric vehicle grants from our state and again when it moved to illegally end electric vehicle sales and tailpipe emission reductions targets. With the positions being taken by the Trump Administration, Colorado must step up and lean in even more—by providing robust incentives to promote emissions-free vehicles and EV charging stations throughout the state.
People living near congested highways suffer from greater health risks, including asthma and lung-related disease. That’s one of many reasons why environmental justice principles should be paramount in transportation planning processes and decision-making. As governor, I will prioritize investments in air quality testing, mitigation, congestion reduction measures, and other strategies to protect the health and quality of life of those living near roads and highways.
This also includes homes and K-12 schools adjacent to small airports and flight paths. Residents living in communities surrounding local airports have pleaded to the federal government and state to help curb incessant airplane engine noise and harms from outdated and dangerous leaded fuels used by aircraft—shown to result in high blood lead levels in children who live near airports. I worked with the sponsors in writing and strongly support H.B. 24-1235 to reduce airport impacts on communities. But that’s not enough—we can and should do more to ensure these impacts are addressed—by updating state laws, supporting the regional airports’ transition to unleaded fuels, and pushing Congress and the federal government which oversees aviation laws to swiftly address these harms. And the Colorado Division of Aeronautics must be more than a champion of the aviation industry, but also a partner to communities and people struggling with aviation impacts—working to assist in resolving conflicts and promoting safer airport operations that minimize impacts on peoples’ quality of life.
Engaging People in a Planning Process That Works for All
Our transportation system must work for everyone and for all communities. Part of sound planning is the principle that what works well for one community may not in another. An urban community’s top need may be greater transit options, yet a rural community’s top need may be wider highway shoulders for safety. We will follow this principle so that each community is supported to achieve its own needs and challenges. As governor, I will work with communities as partners to accomplish our goals.
But collaboration and planning doesn’t end when a transportation project starts. Projects that cause construction-related impacts like road detours, sidewalk closures, noise, and traffic delays can severely harm businesses and neighborhoods adjacent to a project. This merits ongoing communication between CDOT and those impacted to minimize any such impacts during a project to ensure businesses can continue to thrive and people can get where they need to go.
As governor, I will also ensure that Colorado’s transportation planning relies on the bottom-up approach envisioned in our laws. That means capitalizing on the expertise of people representing local communities, the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Tribes, metropolitan planning organizations, transportation planning regions, and the Statewide Transportation Advisory Committee among others. These partners must have a strong voice and leadership role in crafting Colorado’s transportation priorities. This open, public input-based, community-driven approach works best for prioritizing our limited infrastructure dollars. As governor, I will ensure all stakeholders are partners empowered in our decision-making processes.
Leveraging the Highway System to Achieve Broadband in Every Colorado Community
Broadband continues to be unavailable in too many Colorado homes—with 100,000 locations still lacking adequate Internet service. In the 21st Century, it’s unacceptable to have families unconnected from reliable Internet service. As governor, I will reduce red tape or hurdles in the way of broadband infrastructure from reaching those who need it, including being placed safely in highway rights-of-way.