Across the nation, many state-level elected officials talk about reducing transportation emissions but the agencies they nominally oversee plan and fund automobile infrastructure that increase emissions anyway. Recently, the State of Colorado is instead starting to move toward matching rhetoric with investment.
When Gov. Jared Polis shut down Colorado’s hospitality industry in March 2020 in an emergency effort to keep COVID-19 from spiraling out of control, the view from inside bars, breweries and restaurants looked grim. Most didn’t know if they could survive on takeout alone.
Denver City Council voted 10-3 on January 30 to decriminalize jaywalking, adding the Mile High City to the growing list of jurisdictions that are revisiting their jaywalking laws.
Denver pedestrians and wheelchair users no longer will risk receiving a municipal ticket if they choose to cross a city street mid-block as opposed to using a crosswalk at an intersection.
Denver looks set to join California, Virginia and Kansas City in decriminalizing jaywalking. City Council approved a bill Monday that relaxes Denver’s jaywalking laws and align’s them with the state’s less-stringent ones. It also instructs police to make jaywalking enforcement a low priority.
Stand along any part of Colfax Avenue in downtown Denver, and it won’t take long to see the interaction between people and cars.This busy street is not only a major artery for Denver, it’s also a popular place for pedestrians who visit nearby businesses.
For nearly two weeks after a late December snowstorm that left 7 inches of snow on the ground in Denver, when resident Julie Reiskin needed to leave her home on Milwaukee and 37th, she had to roll her wheelchair down the middle of busy streets and then station herself in the street to flag down a public bus.
We’re kicking off the year sharing a round-up of what we consider Wins & Wrecks for the U.S. Vision Zero movement. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list, but rather a cross-section of bright spots – some that are already yielding positive results and some that we’re optimistically projecting will do so – and some disappointments, or shall we say, opportunities to do better.
Two people on bicycles were recently killed by motorists in North Denver. Both crashes happened on Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) roads that continue to be the deadliest in this part of town. The recent deaths were two of the 82 people that were killed in crashes in Denver in 2022.
Ever dreamed about a leisurely stroll or bicycle ride down the middle of Broadway, perhaps stopping to admire the architecture of the Mayan Theatre or have a nice quiet chat with a passing friend?
Soon, Denver city council will cast votes on a proposal to decriminalize jaywalking. Pedestrian advocate groups say Denver’s laws aren’t in line with the rest of the state, and that the ticketing process targets some people more than others.
At America Walks, we love tracking walkability wins, and 2022 had some exceptional ones. As advocates, we understand the power of communities to use the democratic process to create long-lasting change. Here are four big policy wins, followed by some of our thoughts on what made them possible (spoiler alert – persistent and passionate organizing):
There’s a new effort in Denver to decriminalize jaywalking. While many people do it, not everyone is ticketed for it which is a part of the reason why some city council members are moving to decriminalize it.
C’mon, admit it: You’ve jaywalked, haven’t you? A fair number of us have, mostly because it can cut down on travel time, and it just feels natural — but it’s also usually illegal. A group of advocates and Denver City Council members want to change that.
Denver is headed in the wrong direction when it comes to achieving Vision Zero, its goal of eliminating traffic deaths by 2030.
Denver would give residents the “Freedom to Walk and Roll,” as the proposal is called, under new regulations that decriminalize jaywalking.
City Council is considering a bill to decriminalize jaywalking, with members citing racial disparities ticketing and the inaccessibility of sidewalks across the city. Currently, Denver’s jaywalking laws lead to fines between $65 to $95. They never include jail time, but they can lead to court appearances if paired with other citations.
Jaywalking in Denver could soon become legal if three city council members have their way. “People are jaywalking all day, every day all over the city, but the citations are only happening in a particular part of the city and they’re only targeting a particular type of individual.”
The way Brittany Spinner sees it, the city of Denver sacrificed part of her Washington Park West neighborhood to motor vehicles more than 50 years ago when it widened South Lincoln Street and Broadway to accommodate suburban drivers heading to and from downtown.
In 2021,The Denver Foundation adopted a policy framework and principles that outline its efforts to advance systemic change at the local and state level in the following issue areas: economic opportunity, K-12 education, environment and climate, housing, and transportation.