Lakewood Edge reports that FasTracks construction will limit the use of the center lanes along a stretch of West 6th Avenue for about 10 days next month while crews relocate a signboard, the Denver Transit Construction Group announced Thursday.

Work crews will close the east- and west-bound center lanes of the heavily traveled highway between the Simms/Union exit Indiana Street beginning April 11 to move the Colorado Department of Transportation sign. The sign is in the middle of the highway near the area of the entrance road to Red Rocks College.

The Summit County Citizens Voice reports that Summit Stage and its union drivers are in conflict over an upcoming shift in scheduling practice aimed at cutting costs but which drivers say will cause them economic hardship.

The drivers face a switch from a four-day to a five-day work week, and say the change will inflict hardships, including added commute time, less time with family, and, in some cases, forcing drivers to give up part-time second jobs they depend on to pay their mortgage.

Depending on exact schedule assignments set to take effect next month, some drivers may work 12-hour shifts on some days, and only five hours on their fifth day of work

The Infrastructurist blog takes on the question of when the long-term transportation bill will come up. Federal transportation funding got a much-needed reprieve last week when President Obama signed the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act, which will ensure sufficient federal highway and transit funding for the near future.

All of which is a huge relief to just about everyone involved in the construction and transportation biz. But there’s still a large piece missing: We’re still in dire need of a long-term transportation bill that defines this administration’s goals and priorities for the future of U.S. transportation.

So what are our chances of getting one passed during this session of Congress? Not good. Not good at all.

RTD is moving closer to collecting bus and light rail fares through pre-paid smart cards with a $15.35 million contract to ACS Transport Solutions Inc. to provide the cards, readers, base data processing equipment and wireless communications.

The North Metro commuter rail corridor through the heart of Adams County will be proposed as a single-track line but with five strategically placed double-tracked segments that will allow RTD to slash costs while retaining the capability for 15-minute service on this FasTracks corridor.

RTD has reached a total $143.8 million agreement with the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway that will move progress forward on two FasTracks corridors to Arvada/Wheat Ridge and Westminster.

The Denver Post reports that a Denver task force studying the Colfax Avenue streetcar proposal has determined a dual-track segment between Broadway and Colorado Boulevard, costing about $105 million, could be a “viable” first phase of the project.

The East Colfax corridor already has some of the strongest transit ridership in the country — anchored by RTD’s 15 and 15L bus routes — and that high transit volume might make a Colfax streetcar a good candidate for winning federal money, the study said.

A federal judge in Denver has denied a request from Colorail, a rail transit advocacy group, to stop RTD’s construction work at Denver Union Station while the group appeals to have the design study redone.

Regional Transportation District (RTD) Board members and the RTD General Manager met yesterday with White House officials to discuss the FasTracks program, including a presentation on FasTracks that focused on economic benefits and sustainability improvements.

RTD Chairman Lee Kemp, 2nd Vice Chair Noel Busck and RTD General Manager Phil Washington met Wednesday at the White House with Adolfo Carrión, President Obama’s Director of Urban Affairs for the White House Office of Urban Policy. The discussion centered on the economic benefits, mobility improvements and sustainability enhancements afforded by the FasTracks program.

It’s a first in the United States for bridge construction – the FasTracks bridge over Sixth Avenue Freeway in Lakewood will be rolled into place intact during a weekend highway closure in April.