RTD board chair Patrick O’Keefe postpones meeting on proposed 20% service cuts over framing concerns

The Regional Transportation District postponed a Tuesday meeting where staff planned to introduce conceptual service cuts built around a 20% service reduction, after Board Chair Patrick O’Keefe objected to the way the proposal was framed.

RTD had sent a press release and invitations to the meeting before O’Keefe pulled it off the calendar. He told board members in a memo that the related community outreach meetings the district planned for the following weeks were also postponed.

“The plan for tomorrow was to show scenarios built on the premise of a 20-percent reduction in service, which is a concept this Board previously rejected,” O’Keefe wrote in a memo to board members.

In an internal memo, O’Keefe said he was “very concerned with this being the only parameter informing the proposed scenarios.”

“Put simply, I am very concerned that we are choosing the worst possible potential outcome and making that the discussion point,” he wrote.

O’Keefe said the delay would “allow staff time to develop additional materials and respond to feedback they have received from Directors,” according to a memo to RTD staff and board members.

RTD faces a budget crisis driven by falling ridership and other factors. The agency has considered service cuts across the district and delayed maintenance while trying to close the gap.

In July, RTD staff presented service cut scenarios, including one that would remove the free shuttle service from 16th Street. Board members voted at the time for a smaller reduction of about $20 million.

The district has not announced a new date for the postponed meeting or the rescheduled public outreach sessions.