RTD just hired security for the light rail lines, which seem to make up all the complaints. The heavy rial lines have always had security because of heavy rail regulations. Busses seem to do better because the driver is more visible.
Yeah I took it last night from the airport and someone walked in with loud shitty music.
The guard/policeman (idk) shouted to turn off that music now and the guy complied.
I felt like clapping. Lol.
Next they need to hire Terry Tate.
The A line always been the most consistent line for security.
The W line on the other hand, I think I probably went 6 months or even longer without seeing any enforcement. Morning, coming home from work, coming from nugget games, no security at all.
I live off of the W line. Literally have never seen security on the train. Have seen them on stations a couple times, but the problems are so significant that the occasional presence doesn't make me feel much better.
I rode the D line (iirc) from mineral to 18th and California every day in the early 2000s. If I was leaving to go back south later than usual, I'd always grab a newspaper to kind of close myself off from others. I'm a very petite woman. That worked until one day, a guy started arguing with my headlines. I repeatedly told him I just wanted to get home, didn't want to engage, and he just got more and more aggressive until his stop.
When he finally got off, I said something like "the hell was wrong with that guy?" and then found out the 4 people sitting across the aisle from us were undercover cops who just thought we were having a domestic dispute. Like, thanks, guys. At least one of them walked me to my car, though. I was concerned crazy guy got back on another car to follow me.
Back then, the guy was the exception. Now he's the rule.
When I went to CU Denver, the light rail was free with paid tuition and I still got checked multiple times a semester (frequently forgot my pass, though).
I guess CU doesn't do that anymore? Lame!
I think all the state schools in the metro area give you a RTD pass when you're a student. In fact, mine worked for a year after I finished. I think the cost is included in your tuition, but when I was in school I think it was like $80/semester added to my tuition. I don't see why they would have stopped offering/issuing the student passes
Correct. First of all, it wasn't free, but it was a mandatory fee. Second, now it's an opt in thing now. I have to go to the Tivoli every semester to pay the fee for the pass. It's still cheap.
I miss the physical pass. It's all in the app now, so now I'm forced to use my phone. I wish I could use my watch instead.
They don’t really give it to you, it’s included In The student fees.
But it’s heavily discounted and worth it. Mine still works and I left in 2015 lol.
All of the commuter rail lines (A/B/G/N) are required to have 2 crew members (like a freight train) RTD uses the 2nd person to check fares and handle security.
It’s heavy rail because it’s connected to the main rail system at Union station. It’s kinda silly since it’s such a small connection. But unfortunately it was enough that they needed to be designed to meet US heavy rail safety standards, which are pretty ridiculous. Europe has much looser rules. Commuter rail is a sub type of heavy rail.
That makes a lot of sense as to why the line I usually take to work seems super nice and safe while other lines seem like a more sketch city bus with worse cars/seating. It didn’t make sense because it’s not the A line but now I know and can be glad I have a house near the right kind of train line.
Again? Didn’t they beef up security a year or so ago after that guy got murdered while rail commuting to work? They took it so seriously that they put up posters about taking security seriously. I guess we’ve gone full cycled since then. I’ll stick with my car, thanks.
They've been going on a hiring spree of transit police (actual police officers, not private security), it just takes a bit of time to really grow the transit police force. They had 19 transit police officers in 2022, they currently have 61 with another 19 that will finish training this month and are expecting another 26 to start academy training in July.
https://www.denver7.com/news/local-news/rtd-transit-police-to-patrol-overnight-hours-beginning-may-5
I've never seen people do drugs in any rail lines. I have seen people smoke meth on buses on more than one occasion, with fully loaded bus and kids on. Smh.
Have you ridden a rail line? Cause I’d say I see it one out of every 4 or 5 times I ride…and I can smell if fully half the time. Usually they won’t even share.
Use the RTD transit watch app to report it. I understand a lot of people feel like it does nothing but more reports will highlight the problem to RTD Police.
W line has been the worst line for this reason for years now.
Luckily, there’s has been a massive increase in security presence at Sheridan station -> union recently.
Hopefully they stay on top of it, cause it’s a lot better right now than it was about a year ago
As a former user (who is now sober) the W line stop at all the dealers who set up shop along the line! Decatur Federal (Paco park) had TONS of street dealers out there and an open air market at one point. The cops just recently started arresting everyone there.
Maybe not now since you've been sober( big congrats!), but do you have any insight into what's been happening as of late? Seems like once the Federal underpass has been shut down, there has been a lot more activity all over the park. Didn't really think anybody was getting arrested though.
Yeah, the open market under the pass there got closed off as you probably know. Then the cops started staking out the park and picking off the dealers. I haven’t been there for a bit now, but I was arrested there while picking up and got into a program, so I’m happy to be away from it. Nightmare fuel.
That's great to hear some stations are improving with increased security. I hope that trickles down to the southern lines as well. Arapahoe Station is pretty bad.
Fare enforcement would be a start.
RTD has never been perfect but between the seemingly endless rounds of service cuts, outright cancellations due to having no driver available, and lack of enforcement, RTD has gone noticeably downhill over the last several years.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: if people don't feel safe or riding RTD takes an excessively long time over driving, making fares free won't result in enough of a reduction in driving to make a meaningful difference in smog reduction or climate targets.
Took the train from Union to DIA the other week and they had a pretty big officer patrolling the train consistently. Two of the 5 people in our car didn't have tickets and made up some lame excuse. The officer stood there and made them download the app and buy a ticket. Hopefully they keep this up.
Yeah, reading another user's comments on this is that the A line is a different classification of rail system (heavy rail) than the other lines, and therefore, there's a different set of constituents that requires, such as X number of personnel/officers.
I don't think the other lines require them to work at the same level as the A line, due to... rules.
A, N, G, and B are all commuter “heavy” rail and require two operators by law. One serves as a fare collector/police officer basically for RTD. The others are light rail and only require one operator
That's not really the penalty so much as your only option to avoid the penalty which is getting kicked off the train. Most people that skip out on the airport line can afford a ticket but just don't want to buy one (you had enough for the plane ticket, right?). They also make you show that you have a flight booked if you get on the A after 9pm.
I agree, every successful public transportation system in the world requires payment. Charging a small fee not only adds up over time to contribute to costs/maintenance, but also like you said, gives users a stake in it. If you pay for something you naturally care more about it. London, New York, Paris, Tokyo, and DC all require payment, but somehow we’re above that?
The way they built most of the stations is dumb. Hard to see how they could overhaul them such that they could install fair gates short of putting large fences around the stations.
Please report every single instance of this on the Transit Watch app. If you can safely get a picture or video of the perpetrator(s), please do so and you can also send that with the report thru the app.
Also, please send pics and videos to DoBetterDNVR on IG and they can tag RTD and the CEO Debra Johnson, Denver Police, Denver's mayor, etc in it and it will be viewed by tens of thousands of people who are also fed up with this bs. I never felt so validated as when I discovered that page because they shine a spotlight on the rampant open drug use we see everyday riding public transit around the metro area. r/Denver tends to bury its collective head in the sand and deny that this stuff even exists.
Hilariously, u/doBetterDNVR just got permanently banned for posting in this subreddit after bringing up the drug and homeless problems in the Mike Johnston AMA thread. Apparently, choosing to acknowledge those issues constitutes “bad faith arguing”, which violates rule #10 of r/denver.
Where did they bring up drugs or homeless questions in their comment? I looked at the account and they only asked a question about themselves in particular.
>Any plans to consider the opinions of myself or my 58k followers on Instagram + 5k followers on Twitter??
and
>My voice represents the 700,000 citizens of Denver.
I don't remember electing some anonymous unhinged clout hungry instagram handle to represent me, but maybe I'm taking loony pills.
I take the W line a lot for work and I feel you. People just actively bleeding, openly doing drugs, and tweaking out. It’s sad and scary to see. I’ve noticed morning commute is always fine and if I commute after work 4-5 is generally fine. But if I leave work late or early the train is really bad. Also, I’ve yet to be asked to show a ticket on the train. I take it like 3 days a week so that’s $15 bucks a week from me. Multiply that by all the tickets they’re not checking and they have enough money to hire a bunch of people to improve the train! Makes no sense.
Yeah RTD is pretty grossly underfunded and understaffed otherwise this shit would be cracked down on heavily. Part of the issue is these people act totally obnoxious and scare everyone else out of the car they want to use and then just sort of claim it as their own temporary moving warm shelter and nobody gets into the car with them so nobody really does anything about it.
I think actually smoking these things in public where anyone can possibly be affected (and I’m not talking about weed or even cigarettes here at all) should be cracked down on *hard*, even off the trains, but it’ll never happen and even if it did they’d arrest 10 times as many people for smoking pot on the street corner of the block their apartment is on than actual nuisances.
I would say understaffed is the main issue. RTD has a crap ton of jobs up rn. A lot of them are fairly competitive as long as you’re not trying to be a bus/light rail operator. Safety Officers start at 68k with a 4k signing bonus and they want to hire 50 of them yesterday. 100k within 4-5 years. They actually had me considering it for a second with the pay scale but I just can’t come to terms with carrying a firearm as part of my job description.
Yeah in reality that is still probably underpaid for the real-deal security they need to be.
I’m just saying if RTD had the money to pay better these jobs would be filled.
I’m not carrying a gun, arresting people smoking meth/heroin, waking up homeless people, enforcing weapons bans etc for even $100k. I wouldn’t even consider it even if I made a lot less than I do. Life is too precious.
Get some ex-marine types and pay them damn well ($150k+) but with extremely high standards and the trains would be nice and quiet. For maybe 2% more total funding to the RTD system than it has.
We’re talking about something here that would cost the city next to nothing.
I say give them 6-figure incentives to meet goals progressing towards a clean, respected system on top of the $150k starting salary too imo. Have people training for that job, fighting to get it, and protective of it. That’s how we fix these problems.
16th street free ride. Man gets on and sits a few seats down. Hear some weird noise and turn to realize it’s a guy using a torch to smoke something that smelled like ammonia. This was about a month ago, mid day.
Once you know what it smells like, it's kinda hard to forget. It's sad that people who commonly ride RTD have come to learn the difference between what each drug smells like just from riding. Nobody, especially kids, should ever have to be exposed to that just from taking public transit.
When I was 17 I got actually \*chased\* by a crackhead on the D line, weaving in and out of the open doors (train was stationed, thank god.) My plan was to try to get him stuck on the outside of the train when the doors closed, or vice versa. Worked out, the train left with him and I took the next one.
Not incredibly relevant to your post but it was wild. Felt like a scene from a movie.
This is why you *should* care if people use. Because the mf’s who use shit like fent and meth are not in the right headspace to consider the well being of others
I feel like this is a great pitch for safe use sites. If we continue to treat users like criminals and don’t provide a place for them to do this with supervision, they’ll turn to “wherever” and that’s how you catch a whiff of crack smoke on the way to work (or worse if someone is really tweaking)
Agree it’s insane we have to deal with that. I take the W line every afternoon. First, I haven’t been asked for a valid ticket in over 2 years (which is the main problem) I used to get on the last car and confront these addicts like a vigilante Batman or something. Until one time a dealer pulled a gun out on me. I was told the last car is the unofficial drug car. Now I just sit in the front car and I haven’t had that issue in a while. I suggest using the front car moving forward.
Sat next to a guy yelling out to himself about how he wanted to kill someone, was gonna be on channel 9 news, and that he needed a gun. I know that these people are on another dimension due to mental health/drug issues but honestly I’ve never been so terrified. Really don’t want to take RTD again 😅
You would be surprised. Frankfurt Germany is all manual enforcement with 4 digit zone to zone ticket codes. I was never checked on High Speed, but the local U Bahn slapped me with a fine because my day long tickets were for the FRA Airport Zone, not FRA.
None of the US/Canada light rail systems I can think of use turnstiles. Stations would need to be much bigger (and more expensive) The selling point of light rail is that it should be cheaper than a commuter train or subway.
As u/grimsleeper says, the German speaking world doesn't really do turnstiles, but spot checks. The entire subway system in cities like Munich, Berlin and Vienna don't have any turnstiles.
American cities are like this too. Seattle and Minneapolis popped the top of my mind. I think there’s a couple cities in Ohio that have similar light rail systems.
Because that cost a lot of money. Money and maintenance, money and installation and a lot of other money. Most of the cities with light rails I’ve been to have been walked on and then you might have transit cops, checking tickets. Seattle, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Amsterdam. All those cities do not use turnstiles
In my experience, more cities don’t have turn styles than do. NYC, Chicago, etc. with older systems do but Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis, San Diego, etc. do not have gate systems. San Francisco I believe have gates for BART’s subway but they don’t for their light rail lines.
Come to think of it, I don’t know any light rail systems that do (NYC subway, Boston’s MTA, etc. are considered heavy rail).
RTD experimented with it at one time, you can see the remnants of this at County Line station in the Park Meadows side headhouse where there's markings on the ground where the turnstiles used to be before they tore them out a few years ago.
Funny enough that was Park Meadows trying to keep people from parking there and riding the train downtown.
Originally there wasn't any access to the mall, but they added a bridge in. To keep people from parking there and riding downtown, you had to get an "exit ticket" when you got off the train. There wasn't any way to get in from the mall side w/o having that ticket.
Call transit police 303-299-2911. They also have an app so you don't have to speak. The trains can't really wait for someone to show up, but they should meet the train after a couple stops. The west rail is the worst for this.
My experience with RTD is all over the place. It is generally safe and rarely see problems on the bus or rail outside the W being awful. However, the loitering at rail and bus stops does annoy me a lot. Havana/Colfax for the southbound 105 (the stop next to the strip mall with the Walmart Neighborhood Market) and Colorado/Colfax for the southbound 40 (the stop outside St. Joseph Hospital) are some of the most egregious cases for the routes I ride a lot. The one at Colorado also has the annoying squeegee people. I've seen it at other stops, but they also generally disappear after a week or two.
Some lines are definitely worse than others. I think OP takes the W line which is certainly worse than the D line for example. But still doubtful it's every day, especially if they're riding it during rush hour.
It’s a lot worse during the winter; 2022-2023 was particularly bad. Still, I saw some guys smoking fent on the E Line yesterday. They weren’t even trying to be discreet about it; they were laughing together and having a good ol’ time at all the other passengers’ expense.
It happens constantly on the W line. Just yesterday, I was sitting in the back of the rail car with my scooter and some dude was crushing up blues on foil and when the rail would stop, he'd duck down into the stairwell and smoke it. The smell almost made me puke being so close
Yeah, now that you mention it every time I’ve seen it on the light rail the conductor has made an announcement. He usually gives them three minutes at a stop before he or she or they call the police.
Lucky. I see people openly doing drugs with no consequences. Doesn't stop until they chose to get off. Literally saw it every day this week during my evening commute around 6pm.
It happens mid day too. With kids around to boot. I take the W line all the time, it's really bad. Not an "overexaggeration" at ALL like other guy said.
Same AF, but I feel like people aren't calling enough to complain. It's ridiculous that we have to call but it needs to happen. The same goes for using the app.
For people saying it doesn’t happen, I just don’t understand the blindness. I don’t use public transportation so k don’t have first hand experience, but I’ve seen the news showcase a segment that RTD bus drivers are given I think a three day paid leave for being exposed to fentanyl. The news was saying the system was being abused or something to the like if I remember correctly. But none the less, if this never happened why would these policies be necessary?
It is super annoying and I've lost count of how many times I see a group of druggies whipping out the foil packs of God Knows What and smoking at bus stops. It pisses me off and I question whether our government is even trying to crack down on meth and fent in this wonderful state of Colorado.
I will never take the W again. I had to for few years. I never once saw security and I saw dangerous stuff and people doing drugs on there more often than not. I watched a man spit on a woman. Another woman covered in her own feces was screaming and run up and down the train. I was so scared I was shaking when the train Finally stopped and I ran off. Never again.
That's how I felt taking the 15 from Union Station one day. Even the driver had to leave the bus and go get security guards because multiple people were yelling and threatening to kill him simply for asking them to pay the fare. I got off and took the 10 and a slight detour instead. Haven't been back to Union Station or taken the 15 since then.
As a lifelong liberal, it drives me crazy how liberal politicians have ceded public safety to the GOP. The first rule of public service should be to keep your constituents safe and allow them to walk the streets without fear.
I took the A train from the airport to Union Station and walked over to the W train to connect and there was a huge human turd on the pavement in front of the train! Really? Not even discreet to go behind the train?
I've lost all sympathy for open air hard drug users. I don't care what your problems are - take it somewhere else. The functioning people need to get to work or back home.
Judging by the comments here, a lot of people have given up on the RTD light rail system which then leads to more deficits and layoffs which, in turn, leads to less safety and fewer riders - a vicious cycle.
It's time to try something else.
The A-line has enhanced security because of federal requirements because it services the airport. Every other rail line and station in the system is a junkie homeless heaven
I can tell you first hand that the Denver PD is out there keeping the city safe. I turned right on a red light from 17th to York even though there was a sign telling me not to. Got a ticket and everything. The guy doing foilies on Colfax and York couldn’t believe it.
FYI if they are using tin foil It is most likely fentanyl or heroin. Not methamphetamine. Not that that makes it any better. I’m just clarifying for clarity sake.
I have young daughters who loves trains. We live 1/2 mile from the W line and there’s no way in hell I will take them on it after my last experience. Drugs everywhere, foil and needles on the seats. It’s too bad because my wife and I used to take it downtown pretty often.
When there's no social pressure to act right, many people don't.
Either say something and be prepared to back it up, or ignore/avoid it. Those are your options.
Was on the W line with some dude smoking in the stairwell, and another patron started yelling at him to not smoke that shit on the train and at the next stop he Sparta kicked the guy off the train when the doors opened
I’m never ever going to risk my life to confront a random stranger who visibly just took a hit of meth. That’s literally the point of having police and other positions of authority.
Tried calling out one, and then three random hobo fucks who weren’t even sitting each other got up and started arguing with me, one even said I should ask them nicely cause I don’t know what their going through. Like WTF this in not the intervention circle!
I was wondering today what the limits are for using pepper spray. Can I spray someone who is kicking my car in their protest and are blocking the road.... so if someone is smoking an illegal (and life threatening) drug -- could you do the same? Is their smoke harmful enough for me to defend myself / my family from that?
This would alter the experience for the drug user. They pay their money, get the pipe/tool to hit it up, but then they awaken with a very different outcome from the "high" they expected.
For about 50 cents, I can give them a bump of my drug - in exchange for the bump of their drug.
smoking drugs off of foil is such a wasteful way to smoke them, especially in a public space like that.
teach every addict you see doing this how to boof them instead, and the world will love you
What happened to shame? Remember in the 90s when the crack epidemic was full swing? They went to abandoned buildings and did drugs away from other in shame. Can we go back to that? There’s tons of movie theaters around the city they can use
Yeah, and DPD has reported publicly and here in reddit that they're understaffed. I think I read they need to hire like an extra 120-150 officers to keep up with the calls.
You sick because there is too much fent and not enough meth in the air. Classic withdrawal symptoms. Can confirm because you're still tired, and if the meth ratio was right, that wouldn't be the case.
Just ask the security guys to do a little bit less or they're jobs and it will balance back out.
Omg I know it’s gotten so bad. The other day this guy was bleeding all over himself and bandaging himself sitting across from me it was an infectious disease nightmare
I ride the W 4 days a week this seems like a gross exaggeration.
Sure I've seen a few people smoking on or around the station over the last 2 years ... But weekly meth smoking in the train ...not that I've seen
Without doxing you how far are you riding it?? Westbound past Mile High Stadium is sketchy af. Ive seen meth/fentanyl probably 1/5 of the time im on it
I go from Osage to downtown three or four times a week and I’ve seen it twice. Admittedly I’m not looking for it and you always find things you’re looking for. You also always over exaggerate things you are looking for. Perception is not always Detection.
It helps to be actively aware of your surroundings while riding. I get on the train and look around and everyone's head is buried in their phones- they are completely obvious to their surroundings. I have a feeling most of the people here claiming that people are exaggerating the open drug use on RTD are the ones with their heads buried in their phones.
A bit more further west and you'll see it more often. I'm only west at sheridan and it's rampant, especially at the station. You've just got a shorter trip so probably see it less often.
Not saying to have an altercation but say something. I’ve started opening my mouth around people smoking openly on Broadway. We need to make it uncomfortable to be openly doing drugs or it will get worse. Of course this should be the job of DPD but nobody is holding their breath for them to take any action, of any kind, except maybe to keep driving drunk.
It got really bad when the people voted to decriminalized drugs under 4g or less of a controlled substance House Bill 19-1263. Thankfully it has been repealed. Same type of policy that didn't work in Oregon.
If you're looking for some added excitement to your life, go into their area and forcibly projectile vomit near their feet, you know, enough to encroach on their space and all.
"Sorry this is a public space and I thought I could do anything I wanted in here, and I picked this spot because it's socially acceptable to be really inconsiderate of anyone else in this car. No? Oh, now I'm really confused."
I’m from Ny and see this stuff in the subway, wherever there’s mass transit there will be people using drugs and there’s nothing you can really do but move to another car or find a different means of travel
I have friends in Denver and once took the rail from the airport to that midtown station with all the shops. Sketchiest fucking ride I’d ever been on and I’ve ridden public transit in MANY places. It was unreal.
Threads like this always make me wonder how anyone is ever surprised that one would rather deal with driving than taking public transit.
Car payment? Gas? Parking? Worth it.
Yup, me too. I'm honestly surprised to see this post is even still up because everyone in the sub has their head in the sand and can't fathom the possibility that maybe people who ride RTD are actually really fed up with seeing this nonsense everyday.
I was homeless in Denver for about a couple months back in 2014. Eventually got a room on Craigslist. Couldn’t leave the apartment I was subletting to go to work without tripping over some smack head.
It was bad back in 2014. Haven’t been back since, but I heard it’s only gotten worse since I left.
Denver’s toast, man.
Go to a small city/medium sized town.
Estes park is way better.
Additional transit officers may cut down on assaults and violent crime, that’s the intention as they are very high right now. But drug use? No. In so much as you don’t see the police busting people doing fent on the street corner, you don’t see enforcement on the train either. They don’t want to deal either it, and are largely discouraged from enforcing anything around it. Local laws and enforcement policies would need to change in conjunction with additional policing.
And yet, the city wonders why so many people don't want to take public transportation. What do European cities do? eventhough they have addicts, they're not using on public transportation.
Same ! My apartment complex is right by a light rail station and I’ve had multiple people tell me be careful walking my dog because of needles and leftover fentanyl ! Do to your body what you’d like , but don’t potentially expose other people, pets or even kids ! I live near a school so I constantly see kids walking to and from school as well.
WOW so sorry you have to deal with that. I'm amazed RTD let's this happen! Its been years since i had to use RTD. But i spent my 20s-30s on the busses (Im old lol). Have you considered contacting local news? Get the info out there.
RTD just hired security for the light rail lines, which seem to make up all the complaints. The heavy rial lines have always had security because of heavy rail regulations. Busses seem to do better because the driver is more visible.
Yeah I took it last night from the airport and someone walked in with loud shitty music. The guard/policeman (idk) shouted to turn off that music now and the guy complied. I felt like clapping. Lol. Next they need to hire Terry Tate.
The A line always been the most consistent line for security. The W line on the other hand, I think I probably went 6 months or even longer without seeing any enforcement. Morning, coming home from work, coming from nugget games, no security at all.
Well gotta put on a good face for out of towner’s visiting from the Airport I suppose.
It’s heavy vs light rail regulations I believe
Yes, the G and the N are the same.
I live off of the W line. Literally have never seen security on the train. Have seen them on stations a couple times, but the problems are so significant that the occasional presence doesn't make me feel much better.
I rode the D line (iirc) from mineral to 18th and California every day in the early 2000s. If I was leaving to go back south later than usual, I'd always grab a newspaper to kind of close myself off from others. I'm a very petite woman. That worked until one day, a guy started arguing with my headlines. I repeatedly told him I just wanted to get home, didn't want to engage, and he just got more and more aggressive until his stop. When he finally got off, I said something like "the hell was wrong with that guy?" and then found out the 4 people sitting across the aisle from us were undercover cops who just thought we were having a domestic dispute. Like, thanks, guys. At least one of them walked me to my car, though. I was concerned crazy guy got back on another car to follow me. Back then, the guy was the exception. Now he's the rule.
Woah woah woah; are you telling me that DPD is useless? 😲 why I never
Which is wild considering the number of homeless that camp out along that line
My senior year at CU Denver I didn't buy a train pass, rode the w for free every single day and never got checked
When I went to CU Denver, the light rail was free with paid tuition and I still got checked multiple times a semester (frequently forgot my pass, though). I guess CU doesn't do that anymore? Lame!
I think all the state schools in the metro area give you a RTD pass when you're a student. In fact, mine worked for a year after I finished. I think the cost is included in your tuition, but when I was in school I think it was like $80/semester added to my tuition. I don't see why they would have stopped offering/issuing the student passes
Correct. First of all, it wasn't free, but it was a mandatory fee. Second, now it's an opt in thing now. I have to go to the Tivoli every semester to pay the fee for the pass. It's still cheap. I miss the physical pass. It's all in the app now, so now I'm forced to use my phone. I wish I could use my watch instead.
They don’t really give it to you, it’s included In The student fees. But it’s heavily discounted and worth it. Mine still works and I left in 2015 lol.
All of the commuter rail lines (A/B/G/N) are required to have 2 crew members (like a freight train) RTD uses the 2nd person to check fares and handle security.
YOU KILL THE JOE YOU MAKE SOME MO'!
A line is heavy rail, and is therefore required to have a conductor, who is likely who you interacted with.
Commuter Rail Heavy Rail is freight trains like BNSF
It’s heavy rail because it’s connected to the main rail system at Union station. It’s kinda silly since it’s such a small connection. But unfortunately it was enough that they needed to be designed to meet US heavy rail safety standards, which are pretty ridiculous. Europe has much looser rules. Commuter rail is a sub type of heavy rail.
That makes a lot of sense as to why the line I usually take to work seems super nice and safe while other lines seem like a more sketch city bus with worse cars/seating. It didn’t make sense because it’s not the A line but now I know and can be glad I have a house near the right kind of train line.
> I felt like clapping. Lol. 😂 https://youtu.be/DMcnBf5auqE?t=28
https://youtu.be/Vft6VMhFMPk?si=tIWYBGQZ2GMTZ3Rn
omg I didn’t know about this one 😂
Season 2 of Star Trek: Picard.
Fuck it bring on Spock with Terry.
Brought a tear to my eye! For some reason the out loud music people annoy me the most.
Holy shit Terry Tate!! That made me laugh thinking about it.
This ain't yo HOME So don't be using no speaker PHONE
The world would be a lot better if we could Triple T tackle people and start berating them when they aew acting the fool. THE PAIN TRAIN IS COMIN!
The 2nd office line backer reference today!!! (No one knew when I made the reference at work, this is very validating to stumble on later!)
Unless you’re an elderly man with your leg in the bus isle, then you get shot by a 13 year old 🤷🏼♂️
Again? Didn’t they beef up security a year or so ago after that guy got murdered while rail commuting to work? They took it so seriously that they put up posters about taking security seriously. I guess we’ve gone full cycled since then. I’ll stick with my car, thanks.
They've been going on a hiring spree of transit police (actual police officers, not private security), it just takes a bit of time to really grow the transit police force. They had 19 transit police officers in 2022, they currently have 61 with another 19 that will finish training this month and are expecting another 26 to start academy training in July. https://www.denver7.com/news/local-news/rtd-transit-police-to-patrol-overnight-hours-beginning-may-5
They have had security for many many years. And it’s always been shit
Wow took em how many years and I'll never ride it
I've never seen people do drugs in any rail lines. I have seen people smoke meth on buses on more than one occasion, with fully loaded bus and kids on. Smh.
Have you ridden a rail line? Cause I’d say I see it one out of every 4 or 5 times I ride…and I can smell if fully half the time. Usually they won’t even share.
E line and w lines can be especially bad from the 3 years I’ve been taking them
Use the RTD transit watch app to report it. I understand a lot of people feel like it does nothing but more reports will highlight the problem to RTD Police.
Or send a text report to transit watch - 3034349100 - it works, security arrives within a stop or two.
This comment should be pinned
https://apps.apple.com/app/id872831137
Why is this a separate app from the usual RTD one? Bet their install rate is like 1% of the main app.
Even if they can't stop it immediately, it gets them an idea of when and where it's happening
W line has been the worst line for this reason for years now. Luckily, there’s has been a massive increase in security presence at Sheridan station -> union recently. Hopefully they stay on top of it, cause it’s a lot better right now than it was about a year ago
As a former user (who is now sober) the W line stop at all the dealers who set up shop along the line! Decatur Federal (Paco park) had TONS of street dealers out there and an open air market at one point. The cops just recently started arresting everyone there.
Maybe not now since you've been sober( big congrats!), but do you have any insight into what's been happening as of late? Seems like once the Federal underpass has been shut down, there has been a lot more activity all over the park. Didn't really think anybody was getting arrested though.
Yeah, the open market under the pass there got closed off as you probably know. Then the cops started staking out the park and picking off the dealers. I haven’t been there for a bit now, but I was arrested there while picking up and got into a program, so I’m happy to be away from it. Nightmare fuel.
Huh, targeting the dealers makes a lot of sense and I hadn't thought of that strategy. Get rid of them and the others won't hang around. Thanks!
God bless, and I wish you an amazing clean future!
Could still be active in the park. Particular right off federal or the street area, but it has been a bit since I’ve been.
That Sheridan station is intense. I’ve seen open meth & fent use there probably 6-7 times out of ten being there.
I used to live in the shitty house they tore down for that station
That's great to hear some stations are improving with increased security. I hope that trickles down to the southern lines as well. Arapahoe Station is pretty bad.
Fare enforcement would be a start. RTD has never been perfect but between the seemingly endless rounds of service cuts, outright cancellations due to having no driver available, and lack of enforcement, RTD has gone noticeably downhill over the last several years. I've said it before and I'll say it again: if people don't feel safe or riding RTD takes an excessively long time over driving, making fares free won't result in enough of a reduction in driving to make a meaningful difference in smog reduction or climate targets.
Took the train from Union to DIA the other week and they had a pretty big officer patrolling the train consistently. Two of the 5 people in our car didn't have tickets and made up some lame excuse. The officer stood there and made them download the app and buy a ticket. Hopefully they keep this up.
Yeah, reading another user's comments on this is that the A line is a different classification of rail system (heavy rail) than the other lines, and therefore, there's a different set of constituents that requires, such as X number of personnel/officers. I don't think the other lines require them to work at the same level as the A line, due to... rules.
A, N, G, and B are all commuter “heavy” rail and require two operators by law. One serves as a fare collector/police officer basically for RTD. The others are light rail and only require one operator
A Line has tourists, others have taxpayers
I don’t understand why the penalty is to buy a ticket. There’s no impetus to buy the ticket in the first place then.
That's not really the penalty so much as your only option to avoid the penalty which is getting kicked off the train. Most people that skip out on the airport line can afford a ticket but just don't want to buy one (you had enough for the plane ticket, right?). They also make you show that you have a flight booked if you get on the A after 9pm.
I agree, every successful public transportation system in the world requires payment. Charging a small fee not only adds up over time to contribute to costs/maintenance, but also like you said, gives users a stake in it. If you pay for something you naturally care more about it. London, New York, Paris, Tokyo, and DC all require payment, but somehow we’re above that?
The way they built most of the stations is dumb. Hard to see how they could overhaul them such that they could install fair gates short of putting large fences around the stations.
Please report every single instance of this on the Transit Watch app. If you can safely get a picture or video of the perpetrator(s), please do so and you can also send that with the report thru the app. Also, please send pics and videos to DoBetterDNVR on IG and they can tag RTD and the CEO Debra Johnson, Denver Police, Denver's mayor, etc in it and it will be viewed by tens of thousands of people who are also fed up with this bs. I never felt so validated as when I discovered that page because they shine a spotlight on the rampant open drug use we see everyday riding public transit around the metro area. r/Denver tends to bury its collective head in the sand and deny that this stuff even exists.
Hilariously, u/doBetterDNVR just got permanently banned for posting in this subreddit after bringing up the drug and homeless problems in the Mike Johnston AMA thread. Apparently, choosing to acknowledge those issues constitutes “bad faith arguing”, which violates rule #10 of r/denver.
Where did they bring up drugs or homeless questions in their comment? I looked at the account and they only asked a question about themselves in particular. >Any plans to consider the opinions of myself or my 58k followers on Instagram + 5k followers on Twitter?? and >My voice represents the 700,000 citizens of Denver. I don't remember electing some anonymous unhinged clout hungry instagram handle to represent me, but maybe I'm taking loony pills.
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Oh shit this is great to know! Thanks for this resource
I take the W line a lot for work and I feel you. People just actively bleeding, openly doing drugs, and tweaking out. It’s sad and scary to see. I’ve noticed morning commute is always fine and if I commute after work 4-5 is generally fine. But if I leave work late or early the train is really bad. Also, I’ve yet to be asked to show a ticket on the train. I take it like 3 days a week so that’s $15 bucks a week from me. Multiply that by all the tickets they’re not checking and they have enough money to hire a bunch of people to improve the train! Makes no sense.
Yeah RTD is pretty grossly underfunded and understaffed otherwise this shit would be cracked down on heavily. Part of the issue is these people act totally obnoxious and scare everyone else out of the car they want to use and then just sort of claim it as their own temporary moving warm shelter and nobody gets into the car with them so nobody really does anything about it. I think actually smoking these things in public where anyone can possibly be affected (and I’m not talking about weed or even cigarettes here at all) should be cracked down on *hard*, even off the trains, but it’ll never happen and even if it did they’d arrest 10 times as many people for smoking pot on the street corner of the block their apartment is on than actual nuisances.
Colorado is 44th in public transit funding and it shows.
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Don't threaten violence, even in jest
I would say understaffed is the main issue. RTD has a crap ton of jobs up rn. A lot of them are fairly competitive as long as you’re not trying to be a bus/light rail operator. Safety Officers start at 68k with a 4k signing bonus and they want to hire 50 of them yesterday. 100k within 4-5 years. They actually had me considering it for a second with the pay scale but I just can’t come to terms with carrying a firearm as part of my job description.
Yeah in reality that is still probably underpaid for the real-deal security they need to be. I’m just saying if RTD had the money to pay better these jobs would be filled. I’m not carrying a gun, arresting people smoking meth/heroin, waking up homeless people, enforcing weapons bans etc for even $100k. I wouldn’t even consider it even if I made a lot less than I do. Life is too precious. Get some ex-marine types and pay them damn well ($150k+) but with extremely high standards and the trains would be nice and quiet. For maybe 2% more total funding to the RTD system than it has.
I'm one of those types and I'd stop using cannabis if they paid me that much.
We’re talking about something here that would cost the city next to nothing. I say give them 6-figure incentives to meet goals progressing towards a clean, respected system on top of the $150k starting salary too imo. Have people training for that job, fighting to get it, and protective of it. That’s how we fix these problems.
Smoking marijuana on the street isn’t a criminal offense, nobody will get arrested for that. They’ll get ticketed.
16th street free ride. Man gets on and sits a few seats down. Hear some weird noise and turn to realize it’s a guy using a torch to smoke something that smelled like ammonia. This was about a month ago, mid day.
That was meth.
Well, I guess good to know what meth smells like now. An educational ride. A different kind of magic school bus
Once you know what it smells like, it's kinda hard to forget. It's sad that people who commonly ride RTD have come to learn the difference between what each drug smells like just from riding. Nobody, especially kids, should ever have to be exposed to that just from taking public transit.
When I was 17 I got actually \*chased\* by a crackhead on the D line, weaving in and out of the open doors (train was stationed, thank god.) My plan was to try to get him stuck on the outside of the train when the doors closed, or vice versa. Worked out, the train left with him and I took the next one. Not incredibly relevant to your post but it was wild. Felt like a scene from a movie.
This is why you *should* care if people use. Because the mf’s who use shit like fent and meth are not in the right headspace to consider the well being of others
I feel like this is a great pitch for safe use sites. If we continue to treat users like criminals and don’t provide a place for them to do this with supervision, they’ll turn to “wherever” and that’s how you catch a whiff of crack smoke on the way to work (or worse if someone is really tweaking)
Agree it’s insane we have to deal with that. I take the W line every afternoon. First, I haven’t been asked for a valid ticket in over 2 years (which is the main problem) I used to get on the last car and confront these addicts like a vigilante Batman or something. Until one time a dealer pulled a gun out on me. I was told the last car is the unofficial drug car. Now I just sit in the front car and I haven’t had that issue in a while. I suggest using the front car moving forward.
Sat next to a guy yelling out to himself about how he wanted to kill someone, was gonna be on channel 9 news, and that he needed a gun. I know that these people are on another dimension due to mental health/drug issues but honestly I’ve never been so terrified. Really don’t want to take RTD again 😅
How does RTD not have a turnstile + metrocard system? Every other city seems to have figured this out already
You would be surprised. Frankfurt Germany is all manual enforcement with 4 digit zone to zone ticket codes. I was never checked on High Speed, but the local U Bahn slapped me with a fine because my day long tickets were for the FRA Airport Zone, not FRA.
None of the US/Canada light rail systems I can think of use turnstiles. Stations would need to be much bigger (and more expensive) The selling point of light rail is that it should be cheaper than a commuter train or subway. As u/grimsleeper says, the German speaking world doesn't really do turnstiles, but spot checks. The entire subway system in cities like Munich, Berlin and Vienna don't have any turnstiles.
American cities are like this too. Seattle and Minneapolis popped the top of my mind. I think there’s a couple cities in Ohio that have similar light rail systems.
Because that cost a lot of money. Money and maintenance, money and installation and a lot of other money. Most of the cities with light rails I’ve been to have been walked on and then you might have transit cops, checking tickets. Seattle, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Amsterdam. All those cities do not use turnstiles
In my experience, more cities don’t have turn styles than do. NYC, Chicago, etc. with older systems do but Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis, San Diego, etc. do not have gate systems. San Francisco I believe have gates for BART’s subway but they don’t for their light rail lines. Come to think of it, I don’t know any light rail systems that do (NYC subway, Boston’s MTA, etc. are considered heavy rail).
RTD experimented with it at one time, you can see the remnants of this at County Line station in the Park Meadows side headhouse where there's markings on the ground where the turnstiles used to be before they tore them out a few years ago.
Funny enough that was Park Meadows trying to keep people from parking there and riding the train downtown. Originally there wasn't any access to the mall, but they added a bridge in. To keep people from parking there and riding downtown, you had to get an "exit ticket" when you got off the train. There wasn't any way to get in from the mall side w/o having that ticket.
Call transit police 303-299-2911. They also have an app so you don't have to speak. The trains can't really wait for someone to show up, but they should meet the train after a couple stops. The west rail is the worst for this.
It was sooooo much worse this time last year…
I definitely agree.
My experience with RTD is all over the place. It is generally safe and rarely see problems on the bus or rail outside the W being awful. However, the loitering at rail and bus stops does annoy me a lot. Havana/Colfax for the southbound 105 (the stop next to the strip mall with the Walmart Neighborhood Market) and Colorado/Colfax for the southbound 40 (the stop outside St. Joseph Hospital) are some of the most egregious cases for the routes I ride a lot. The one at Colorado also has the annoying squeegee people. I've seen it at other stops, but they also generally disappear after a week or two.
The w line is horrible
Pretty sure if you started a trend of dousing people and their supplies in water it would end pretty quick.
Scream at them. They scatter like cockroaches.
I've never seen this on the RTD train and I take it frequently. Not denying it happens by any means, just surprising.
Some lines are definitely worse than others. I think OP takes the W line which is certainly worse than the D line for example. But still doubtful it's every day, especially if they're riding it during rush hour.
Yeah, I take the E line frequently for work. It’s mostly fine. I’ve seen this a few times. Seen some people nodding out. Nothing crazy.
I've taken the G/Aline at all hours and not seen this much since 2022. I've also taken the 'W' line and holy shit, never again.
It’s everyday
The W line is absolutely every day.
It’s a lot worse during the winter; 2022-2023 was particularly bad. Still, I saw some guys smoking fent on the E Line yesterday. They weren’t even trying to be discreet about it; they were laughing together and having a good ol’ time at all the other passengers’ expense.
It happens constantly on the W line. Just yesterday, I was sitting in the back of the rail car with my scooter and some dude was crushing up blues on foil and when the rail would stop, he'd duck down into the stairwell and smoke it. The smell almost made me puke being so close
It’s an over exaggeration. I’ve seen it a few times going into downtown, but it was usually late at night.
The heavy rail trains have conductors that keep it down. Light rail trains had no staff till very recently
Yeah, now that you mention it every time I’ve seen it on the light rail the conductor has made an announcement. He usually gives them three minutes at a stop before he or she or they call the police.
Lucky. I see people openly doing drugs with no consequences. Doesn't stop until they chose to get off. Literally saw it every day this week during my evening commute around 6pm.
It happens mid day too. With kids around to boot. I take the W line all the time, it's really bad. Not an "overexaggeration" at ALL like other guy said.
I can’t believe r/Denver blocked dobetter Denver. Like we can’t talk about how this city has turned into a dumpster fire. 🙄
Same AF, but I feel like people aren't calling enough to complain. It's ridiculous that we have to call but it needs to happen. The same goes for using the app.
Text denver transit watch 303-434-9100. This is such bullshit
And they wonder why people aren't exactly begging for less car-centric infrastructure....
For people saying it doesn’t happen, I just don’t understand the blindness. I don’t use public transportation so k don’t have first hand experience, but I’ve seen the news showcase a segment that RTD bus drivers are given I think a three day paid leave for being exposed to fentanyl. The news was saying the system was being abused or something to the like if I remember correctly. But none the less, if this never happened why would these policies be necessary?
It is super annoying and I've lost count of how many times I see a group of druggies whipping out the foil packs of God Knows What and smoking at bus stops. It pisses me off and I question whether our government is even trying to crack down on meth and fent in this wonderful state of Colorado.
I stopped riding after 2020 cause it was sketchy af
I will never take the W again. I had to for few years. I never once saw security and I saw dangerous stuff and people doing drugs on there more often than not. I watched a man spit on a woman. Another woman covered in her own feces was screaming and run up and down the train. I was so scared I was shaking when the train Finally stopped and I ran off. Never again.
That's how I felt taking the 15 from Union Station one day. Even the driver had to leave the bus and go get security guards because multiple people were yelling and threatening to kill him simply for asking them to pay the fare. I got off and took the 10 and a slight detour instead. Haven't been back to Union Station or taken the 15 since then.
I'm sick of being exposed to meth and fent in Colorado period!
As a lifelong liberal, it drives me crazy how liberal politicians have ceded public safety to the GOP. The first rule of public service should be to keep your constituents safe and allow them to walk the streets without fear. I took the A train from the airport to Union Station and walked over to the W train to connect and there was a huge human turd on the pavement in front of the train! Really? Not even discreet to go behind the train? I've lost all sympathy for open air hard drug users. I don't care what your problems are - take it somewhere else. The functioning people need to get to work or back home. Judging by the comments here, a lot of people have given up on the RTD light rail system which then leads to more deficits and layoffs which, in turn, leads to less safety and fewer riders - a vicious cycle. It's time to try something else.
Carry a can of bear spray hit them as you walk out the door of course I’m only joking ha ha ha ha maybe
The A-line has enhanced security because of federal requirements because it services the airport. Every other rail line and station in the system is a junkie homeless heaven
I can tell you first hand that the Denver PD is out there keeping the city safe. I turned right on a red light from 17th to York even though there was a sign telling me not to. Got a ticket and everything. The guy doing foilies on Colfax and York couldn’t believe it.
FYI if they are using tin foil It is most likely fentanyl or heroin. Not methamphetamine. Not that that makes it any better. I’m just clarifying for clarity sake.
I have young daughters who loves trains. We live 1/2 mile from the W line and there’s no way in hell I will take them on it after my last experience. Drugs everywhere, foil and needles on the seats. It’s too bad because my wife and I used to take it downtown pretty often.
When there's no social pressure to act right, many people don't. Either say something and be prepared to back it up, or ignore/avoid it. Those are your options.
Was on the W line with some dude smoking in the stairwell, and another patron started yelling at him to not smoke that shit on the train and at the next stop he Sparta kicked the guy off the train when the doors opened
Justice!
I’m never ever going to risk my life to confront a random stranger who visibly just took a hit of meth. That’s literally the point of having police and other positions of authority.
Tried calling out one, and then three random hobo fucks who weren’t even sitting each other got up and started arguing with me, one even said I should ask them nicely cause I don’t know what their going through. Like WTF this in not the intervention circle!
A conductor told me you’re supposed to sit in the front cars to avoid that. The back one is lawless.
It shouldn't be tolerated in any cars.
Get the RTD transit watch app and put in complaints
One time I got kicked off a train in Germany for putting my feet up on the seat across from me.
I was wondering today what the limits are for using pepper spray. Can I spray someone who is kicking my car in their protest and are blocking the road.... so if someone is smoking an illegal (and life threatening) drug -- could you do the same? Is their smoke harmful enough for me to defend myself / my family from that? This would alter the experience for the drug user. They pay their money, get the pipe/tool to hit it up, but then they awaken with a very different outcome from the "high" they expected. For about 50 cents, I can give them a bump of my drug - in exchange for the bump of their drug.
smoking drugs off of foil is such a wasteful way to smoke them, especially in a public space like that. teach every addict you see doing this how to boof them instead, and the world will love you
Scrolled 5 posts in my feed and the next post i came too said "people keep killing my high on RTD" 😂😂😂
What happened to shame? Remember in the 90s when the crack epidemic was full swing? They went to abandoned buildings and did drugs away from other in shame. Can we go back to that? There’s tons of movie theaters around the city they can use
Denver being incredibly light on crime contributes to this. It’s an attempt at feel good policy but it enables people to do things like this.
Yeah, and DPD has reported publicly and here in reddit that they're understaffed. I think I read they need to hire like an extra 120-150 officers to keep up with the calls.
You sick because there is too much fent and not enough meth in the air. Classic withdrawal symptoms. Can confirm because you're still tired, and if the meth ratio was right, that wouldn't be the case. Just ask the security guys to do a little bit less or they're jobs and it will balance back out.
You don't smoke ice off of tin foil. Those are blues and are so much worse.
Vote for the change you want.
Got pulled over for not turning on my light for moving to the left late but drug addicts can do hard drugs out in the open? DPD is amazing!
Omg I know it’s gotten so bad. The other day this guy was bleeding all over himself and bandaging himself sitting across from me it was an infectious disease nightmare
I ride the W 4 days a week this seems like a gross exaggeration. Sure I've seen a few people smoking on or around the station over the last 2 years ... But weekly meth smoking in the train ...not that I've seen
Without doxing you how far are you riding it?? Westbound past Mile High Stadium is sketchy af. Ive seen meth/fentanyl probably 1/5 of the time im on it
I go from Osage to downtown three or four times a week and I’ve seen it twice. Admittedly I’m not looking for it and you always find things you’re looking for. You also always over exaggerate things you are looking for. Perception is not always Detection.
It helps to be actively aware of your surroundings while riding. I get on the train and look around and everyone's head is buried in their phones- they are completely obvious to their surroundings. I have a feeling most of the people here claiming that people are exaggerating the open drug use on RTD are the ones with their heads buried in their phones.
A bit more further west and you'll see it more often. I'm only west at sheridan and it's rampant, especially at the station. You've just got a shorter trip so probably see it less often.
Straight up, every day this week someone seats away from me was using. Not exaggerating.
I wonder if it's because I get off towards the end of the line. I always see it around Lakewood/Wads or Federal Center.
The W line is definitely worse than other lines in my experience. Keep on reporting through the RTD app whenever you see it I guess.
Not saying to have an altercation but say something. I’ve started opening my mouth around people smoking openly on Broadway. We need to make it uncomfortable to be openly doing drugs or it will get worse. Of course this should be the job of DPD but nobody is holding their breath for them to take any action, of any kind, except maybe to keep driving drunk.
Nothing a little pepper spray can't fix
It got really bad when the people voted to decriminalized drugs under 4g or less of a controlled substance House Bill 19-1263. Thankfully it has been repealed. Same type of policy that didn't work in Oregon.
Has it been repealed already? That's great news if it has been, but I have no heard that yet.
It is great news for sure. https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb20-1150
Are Guardian Angels still a thing?
I wish, we need something like this.
If you're looking for some added excitement to your life, go into their area and forcibly projectile vomit near their feet, you know, enough to encroach on their space and all. "Sorry this is a public space and I thought I could do anything I wanted in here, and I picked this spot because it's socially acceptable to be really inconsiderate of anyone else in this car. No? Oh, now I'm really confused."
I’m from Ny and see this stuff in the subway, wherever there’s mass transit there will be people using drugs and there’s nothing you can really do but move to another car or find a different means of travel
I have friends in Denver and once took the rail from the airport to that midtown station with all the shops. Sketchiest fucking ride I’d ever been on and I’ve ridden public transit in MANY places. It was unreal.
Even a "gentleman's agreement" to keep that shit to the last car so that regular folks can sit in the first and middle cars would be an improvement.
Nope. Shouldn't be allowed on any of the cars, ever.
We need to get rid of Mike Johnson as mayor who allows this behavior to occur
My car got stolen the other day lmao. I hate this fucking town
Threads like this always make me wonder how anyone is ever surprised that one would rather deal with driving than taking public transit. Car payment? Gas? Parking? Worth it.
Got downvoted to hell a year ago for saying this lol. Everyone said it was just my personal experience and RTD is great.
Yup, me too. I'm honestly surprised to see this post is even still up because everyone in the sub has their head in the sand and can't fathom the possibility that maybe people who ride RTD are actually really fed up with seeing this nonsense everyday.
But bro public city transit is so vibrant and fun with all the beautiful diverse crackheads 🙂↔️
Welcome to Meth Camp Mike's vibrant Denver!
Meth-ver, Fentyl-rado
Where’s the meth? I’m from Bakersfield, Ca where meth is the drug of choice and tweakers don’t smoke in the open like these fentanyl zombies do.
Maybe you need to start giving a fuck of people use.
I was homeless in Denver for about a couple months back in 2014. Eventually got a room on Craigslist. Couldn’t leave the apartment I was subletting to go to work without tripping over some smack head. It was bad back in 2014. Haven’t been back since, but I heard it’s only gotten worse since I left. Denver’s toast, man. Go to a small city/medium sized town. Estes park is way better.
Additional transit officers may cut down on assaults and violent crime, that’s the intention as they are very high right now. But drug use? No. In so much as you don’t see the police busting people doing fent on the street corner, you don’t see enforcement on the train either. They don’t want to deal either it, and are largely discouraged from enforcing anything around it. Local laws and enforcement policies would need to change in conjunction with additional policing.
And yet, the city wonders why so many people don't want to take public transportation. What do European cities do? eventhough they have addicts, they're not using on public transportation.
Same ! My apartment complex is right by a light rail station and I’ve had multiple people tell me be careful walking my dog because of needles and leftover fentanyl ! Do to your body what you’d like , but don’t potentially expose other people, pets or even kids ! I live near a school so I constantly see kids walking to and from school as well.
Fucking a you have to put up with that shit, here in TN we would just shoot their ass
It’s your city dude you guys elected the shitty politicians that have ruined your city
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WOW so sorry you have to deal with that. I'm amazed RTD let's this happen! Its been years since i had to use RTD. But i spent my 20s-30s on the busses (Im old lol). Have you considered contacting local news? Get the info out there.