With RTD considering discontinuing its Route 228 bus service, Superior could lose what the town called its only neighborhood bus route — a potential change the town has pushed back against.
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The Regional Transportation District’s Route 228 is one of few bus routes in Superior — and one that connects the town to nearby municipalities.
“Route 228 is currently the only fixed-route neighborhood bus service operating within Superior, connecting residents to Downtown Superior, local neighborhoods and the U.S. 36 and McCaslin Park-n-Ride,” the town said in a news release.
“Fixed-route” means a traditional bus service that goes on a consistent path.
The RTD board is expected to vote in July on a proposal to eliminate Route 228, according to the news release.
According to the route’s map on RTD’s website, 228 runs from Arapahoe Road in Lafayette south to Louisville, on Via Appia, into Superior on McCaslin Boulevard and continues south on Rock Creek Parkway before ending in Broomfield on the east side of FlatIron Crossing mall.
“Ridership performance remains extremely low on the 228. With an average of 3.9 boardings an hour, Route 228 has the lowest boardings an hour of any RTD fixed-route bus throughout its system based on data from 2024 and 2025,” Tara Broghammer, an RTD spokesperson, said in an email.
RTD’s community routes have a “service standard of 8.2 boardings an hour,” Broghammer said, adding that the SKIP and BOUND routes in Boulder average over 25 boardings per hour.
Superior got new northbound and southbound bus stops to reroute Route 228 through the downtown Superior area recently, and the new stops “had no impact on ridership performance,” Broghammer said.
Superior’s release said discontinuing the route now wouldn’t be giving the 228 a chance to build ridership from its new changes.
“Superior residents contribute more than $4.5 million annually to RTD through the regional 1% sales tax,” the release said. “The Town is urging RTD to keep Route 228 in service and allow time for recent improvements to succeed.”
Broghammer said Superior has access to other transit options, including the Flatiron Flyer and the AB Boulder / Denver Airport routes that both serve the McCaslin station.
“A broad extent of Superior is within a half-mile walk of McCaslin Station. Also, FlexRide service in local neighborhoods is available,” she said. (The vast majority of Superior is outside that half-mile radius.)
Different from fixed routes, FlexRide provides “extended” bus service that runs on a scheduling system. Riders can “connect to Park-n-Rides, stations, work, medical centers, business parks, and other local destinations” and “take FlexRide to run errands, get to appointments, or connect with other RTD services,” RTD’s website says. Riders book FlexRide trips. But for scheduled Flex routes at RTD stations and Park-n-Rides, no reservations are needed, the website says.
Superior’s release also urges community members who “ride Route 228 every day, use it occasionally or simply believe Superior should continue to have neighborhood bus service” to give feedback to RTD.
The public can submit comments to RTD about the issue through email, an online comment form or by attending RTD meetings.
