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No Bonus For RTD General Manager Due To 'A Line' Problems

By Melissa Garcia

DENVER, Colo. (CBS4) - The Regional Transportation Board of Directors decided against awarding a bonus this year to the Regional Transportation District's General Manager, Dave Genova.

The board cited, in part, problems with the transit agency's A Line to Denver International Airport as a reason behind its decision.

a-line-1
(credit: CBS)

Chris May, a Denver resident, was trying out the A Line for the first time since its opening in April.

"I'm going to try this out. I've got a little extra time (before my flight), and we'll see how reliable this is," May said.

The $9 fare brings visitors like John and Courtney Tierney from DIA to downtown Denver for a price they're happy with.

"It was a long way in, so I think a cab would have been really expensive," Courtney said.

The A Line is one of five new RTD rail and bus lines that had been scheduled to open in 2016, but only three of the lines opened in the anticipated timeframe.

B Line RTD
(credit: CBS)

The G Lne from Union Station through Old Town Arvada was supposed to open in the fall, but was stifled by problems in the positive train control system's "gate-down" timing.

"Because the gates come down a little bit too early and stay down a little bit too long, there are concerns about automobile traffic," said Scott Reed, a spokesperson for RTD.

Reed said that the other delayed rail, the R Line extending from Interstate 225 and Parker Road to Smith Road connecting with the A Line missed its mark because the contractor was still finishing the rail.

"No transit agency has ever opened five new rapid transit lines in one year, and I think we're finding out why," Reed added.

He said the schedule was an ambitious expansion in rapid transit that the agency was asking commuters for their patience with.

Scott Reed

"We're making a lot of progress. It's not as fast as we would like, but we've already had some pretty good successes, and we will continue to build on that," Reed said.

Due to the delays, RTD officials said that commuters could now expect both the G Line and the R Line to open sometime in 2017.

The North Metro Line along I-25 was expected to open in 2018.

2019 was the anticipated opening year for the Southeast Rail Extension into Ridgegate.

Melissa Garcia has been reporting for CBS4 News since March 2014. Find her bio here, follow her on Twitter @MelissaGarciaTV, or send your story idea to mkgarcia@cbs.com.

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