Low wages and a strong economy are making it hard to find new bus drivers in Denver. The lack of drivers leads to decreased service.

Denver’s Regional Transportation District (RTD) is having trouble hiring drivers. The $19.23 per hour starting wages have not attracted enough bus drivers to fill all the routes and replace drivers retiring. "The Regional Transportation District is short 120 full- and part-time drivers. Without these drivers, some buses and trains never leave the station, leaving passengers waiting and frustrated," reports Andy Bosselman. The labor shortage is having an impact on the ground, "In February, RTD cancelled some buses and trains, totaling 1,204 missed service hours," Bosselman writes. If bus schedules are forced to shrink, that makes transit less attractive in a city that’s already losing bus ridership.
Other American cities are facing a similar problem. Denver is a city with a rising cost of living and a low 3.7 percent unemployment rate. Another issue is the RTD's long hiring process, which loses candidates along the way. The agency has sought to curb this loss by adding electronic hiring capability, but some complain the system is still too slow.
FULL STORY: Colorado’s Bus Driver Shortage. Part 1: The Problem

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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
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Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont