The Oct. 12 Commuting Solutions Membership Meeting provided a unique opportunity to hear from a panel made up of three members of the Regional Transportation District (RTD) Board of Directors, our partners in sustainable transportation goals.
In attendance from the board were Erik Davidson, RTD Director District I and Chair of the Finance & Planning Committee; Lynn Guissinger, RTD Director District O, and Executive Committee First Vice Chair; and Vince Buzek, RTD Director for District J and Board Chair.
The RTD Board of Directors’ responsibility to steer RTD through pandemic-related financial uncertainty was addressed by panelist Erik Davidson in his role as Chair of RTD’s Finance & Planning Committee. “The financial future of RTD following the most challenging periods of the pandemic, when service was broadly halted, has been secured through responsible planning and management on the part of the current Board of Directors,” said Davidson.
Davidson went on to explain that the RTD Board of Directors was able to stabilize their pandemic-disrupted base system of funding through loan refinancing and consolidating their bond commitments, managing to save $144 million annually in the process. The savings allowed RTD to increase drivers’ compensation.
The panelists also spoke about their stewardship of some transit areas where they manage a direct path for service improvements. Then they addressed the spaces where collaboration and partnership with governmental leadership are necessary and beneficial.
“One of these areas is in micro-mobility efforts at a local level,” said RTD board member Lynn Guissinger. “RTD is very supportive of proceeding with their new partnerships program to expand new microtransit services in partnership with local governments, businesses, and other organizations.”
To learn more about the membership, mission, and service of the RTD Board of Directors, please visit the Board of Directors webpage here.
