CoCo is a multi-billion-dollar rail proposal duplicating corridors our transit system already covers. When you look past the marketing and grade CoCo against the actual transit options operating today, the numbers don’t add up. Here are some reasons why you should vote NO.
CoCo is not a modern high-speed train. Because it is forced to share single-track freight corridors, it is permanently capped at a maximum safety speed of just 79 mph. When factoring in mandatory stops and freight delays, the train fails to beat the speed of driving your own car.
Sharing speed-limited freight tracks permanently caps CoCo at a mere 8 to 10 daily round trips. Existing express buses already provide up to 60 daily round trips and beat the train’s Fort Collins travel time.
A starter service of three daily round trips from Denver to Fort Collins will proceed using existing tracks whether this new tax passes or fails. Let that service prove actual ridership first.
CoCo drains $295 million annually from our communities in sales taxes, while our existing regional express bus network operates entirely on a budget of under $20 million per year. This massive waste means that under CoCo’s most optimistic ridership projections, every single passenger trip will cost taxpayers an outrageous $300 subsidy.
CoCo relies heavily on RTD partnership. In 2004, voters were promised the FasTracks rail system would cost $4.7 billion. RTD spent $5.5 billion, yet its promised passenger tracks to Boulder remain completely unbuilt, requiring $1.6 billion more. Because that rail infrastructure was never delivered, the substandard workaround is CoCo: slow commercial freight lines.
Our bus system isn’t perfect, but buses and car shares offer flexibility to grow. CoCo is a permanent dead end. For residents depending on transit for work, school, or appointments, a train capped at 10 daily trips is a trap. Missing a connection means waiting hours on a platform or risking your job.
Everyday commuters need reliable, high-frequency departures. CoCo is built for leisure travelers who have the luxury of time to plan around a rigid schedule for shopping, concerts, or sporting events. High-frequency bus lines give working riders their time back—not a freight-dominated system treating transit as a weekend luxury. Spending $295 million annually on a low-frequency network is a massive misuse of funds.