Reader: As Colfax reopens, ‘nobody wants to ride mass transit in Denver’

The first section of Colfax has reopened after two years of construction for the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) effort. Restaurants, fresh off what they call a “nightmare,” are blinking at the new view. Some closed. Others survived. One flooded.

There’s a little optimism in the air now, but plenty of hurt feelings for businesses lost along the way. And with new BRT projects planned in other parts of the city, readers remain cautious.

It’s awful what these small businesses have been through and continue to go through trying to stay in business on a street like Colfax. They need our support!

Here is another newsletter you might like:

BRT stations and Colfax looks great. It will be a net positive for the businesses.

No one wants to ride public transit. We own vehicles. We have Uber. There’s no point in wasting time and money on public transit.

BRT is a fckn joke. The stations look stupid in the neighborhood. Just another corporate cash grab.

Denver is wasting even MORE money on mass transit. Haven’t we learned anything from the past? Nobody wants to ride mass transit in Denver. Most of the buses and trains are empty. The only people taking mass transit are the homeless, drug addicts, people too cheap to buy a car, or those hippies still living in their parents’ basement smoking pot who are just too high to ride their bicycle today. This is America. We like our cars.

Block by block, business by business, patron by patron, it will be up to us to support and promote a successful historical Ave.

Important to keep supporting the businesses.

The Squire… happy they survived too… so many business closed during this… we barely made it… not even sure if we can rebound tho…

What do you think? Are Colfax spots already doomed, or will the BRT facelift help in the long run? Send your thoughts to [email protected]

If you value independent journalism, please consider making a contribution to support our continued coverage of essential stories and to investigate issues that matter.

Select how much you'd like to contribute

Antony Bruno is Westword’s Food & Drink Editor, a position he started in May 2026. Previously he was a freelance writer who wrote the Eat Up Havana series, visiting every restaurant along Havana Street in Aurora. Prior to Westword, Bruno was an editor at Billboard magazine and has also written for 5280, Dining Out Denver, SOMM Journal, and other publications. A graduate of the Cook Street School of Culinary Arts, he strives to help others level up their cooking skills and food knowledge.