Tipton blasted for scrimping on buses, backing billions in tax breaks for ‘Big Oil’

U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton, the Republican who beat out Democrat John Salazar in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District last year, is taking some political heat of late for trying to save $15,000 in federal funding on a mass transit project in the Roaring Fork Valley while simultaneously declining to oppose more than $16 billion in tax breaks for oil and gas companies reaping record profits.

Stimulus funds won’t help with big-picture fix for I-70

If you’re looking for innovation in Colorado’s share of the Obama administration’s stimulus package, you’re likely to be disappointed in what some transportation officials are calling “a jobs bill.”

Most of the $520 million in new spending headed this way will be pumped into much-needed and “shovel-ready” paving projects and repairs for bridges and interchanges that have been put off for years in the face of shrinking federal and state highway budgets.

LaHood could be good for Colorado train backers

The pending appointment by the Obama administration of Republican Illinois Congressman Ray LaHood as Secretary of Transportation could be a positive sign for public transportation buffs in Colorado who would love to see light rail expanded on the Front Range and a high-speed train into the mountains.

High-speed train to mountains may be derailed by economy

With the price of oil plummeting, the economy tanking and Colorado’s roads crumbling, there hasn’t been much post-election talk about high-speed rail service between Denver and the state’s major mountain resorts.

European-style Ski Trains Eyed as Option for Easing I-70 Gridlock

Ludwig Kurz, former Vail mayor and current director of community relations for nearby Beaver Creek resort, would like to see people in ski boots and goggles wandering the 16th Street Mall in downtown Denver.

I-70 Toll Debate Brings Mountain Rail Concept to the Forefront

The battle lines drawn over a proposed toll on Interstate 70 into Colorado’s high country are much more than mere Western-Slope-versus-Front-Range wrangling. The debate is also being framed along the lines of mass transit proponents versus highway expansionists.