Largest U.S. Rural Transit System Completes Maintenance Facility Expansion

Colorado’s second-largest transit agency and the largest rural transit system in the United States, Roaring Fork Transportation Authority (RFTA), has a newly expanded maintenance facility to meet growing population and ridership needs. The expanded Glenwood Maintenance Facility provides office space for operations and indoor heated storage for 60 buses, including four battery-electric bus charging stations and accommodations for expansion to hydrogen fuel cell electric buses. 

The facility was originally designed to store and maintain 34 buses. As ridership grew (60 percent from 2002 to 2022), an expanded, heated indoor facility became a necessity to keep buses from idling outside in the cold, to reduce wear and tear, and for electric bus efficiency.

The agency worked with a Stantec design-build team and Saunders Construction, which led architecture, design, engineering, and project management/construction services. The new facility addresses operational deficiencies and will help the agency better accommodate public transportation needs, including expanding BRT and regional services.

“The GMF expansion has been a critical project for the growing population of Pitkin and Garfield counties and the surrounding areas,” said Merlin Maley, senior principal for Stantec. “We are excited to see its doors open to the public and improve the reliability and efficiency of RFTA’s operations, while also reducing fossil fuel emissions.”