Taylor Swift fans headed to her Denver concerts Friday and Saturday have several transit options to get there — offering ways to avoid parking costs and reduce the hassle at Empower Field.
Here’s a look at how the Regional Transportation District is adding capacity to help fans, along with navigation tips and a few pitfalls to avoid.
RTD has made planning pretty easy: On its Next Ride website, select the “plan a trip” option and type “Taylor Swift” in the destination box to see your options to get to the stadium. Several third-party phone apps also provide real-time RTD schedules and route mapping, including Google and Apple maps, the Transit app, and the Uber and Lyft apps.
Top tip: Check your route’s schedule in advance to make sure it will still be running after the 6:30 p.m. show is over, since other concerts on Swift’s Eras Tour have ended well past 11 p.m., after a three-hour-plus headliner performance. Most of RTD’s trains run late enough, but a couple likely won’t.
The metro Denver transit agency’s Zero Fare for Better Air promotion in July and August means all of its services are free. And day parking is free at Park-n-Ride lots for residents of RTD’s service area (and often for everyone else, too).
RTD adds train cars to E and W lines
Before and after the concert, RTD plans to add train cars to the E and W light-rail lines, which directly serve the Empower Field at Mile High Station east of the stadium. The W-Line also stops at the Decatur/Federal Station southwest of the stadium. Both are a 10-minute walk away.
Those two lines, like RTD’s other routes, will run on their normal schedules, but the extra cars will provide more capacity. That may come in handy because there’s another downtown-centric event both nights — the Colorado Rockies host the New York Yankees at Coors Field.
The E and W lines will be running late after Swift’s shows, though their half-hour frequencies may result in crowding.
RTD is easing up this weekend on one project that has hurt train service. The E-Line, along with the H-Line, have had reduced service on the southeast corridor because of a maintenance project that’s also caused some delays between stations. RTD says the project will be put on hold Friday through Sunday, reducing delays — though trains still will run every half hour.
Other rail and bus options to reach the stadium
Rail: RTD’s A, B, G and N commuter-rail lines travel to downtown’s Union Station, which offers a connection to the E and W lines two blocks away. The D and H light-rail lines travel to the downtown loop, offering a connection to the E-Line at the 10th/Osage Station. Riders also can get off at the Colfax at Auraria Station and walk about 20 minutes to the stadium.
Bus: Empower Field is within walking distance of RTD’s 30 and 31 bus routes along Federal Boulevard, and the 1, 15L and 16 stop at Decatur/Federal. Other routes feed into Union Station from multiple directions, offering a transfer to the E and W lines there, including the Flatiron Flyer from Boulder and routes 0, 9, 10, 15, 20 and 32.
Will you be able to get home after the show?
Most of RTD’s rail lines, including the E and W, run until 1 a.m. or later on Friday and Saturday nights. But a couple lines don’t, with the last B-Line train leaving Union Station for Westminster at 11:09 p.m. both nights and the final N-Line leaving Union Station for Thornton at 10:56 p.m. Friday and 11:26 p.m. Saturday.
RTD says it’s adding cars to N-Line trains, but riders may have to miss Swift’s final songs to get to Union Station in time for the last train.
Many bus routes that serve the stadium area also run late into the night. The best advice is to check RTD’s schedules on the Next Ride website, which allows users to plan future trips and see their options based on what’s running.
And make sure to bring patience, since many fans leaving the show will be heading to the same train platforms or bus stops, and vehicles may be crowded.
Riding your bike?
Empower Field is along major bike routes, including the South Platte River Trail, and the stadium has more than 300 bike racks near the path from the river.
Still planning to drive?
Those driving should be aware of parking restrictions if they don’t have passes to park in Empower Field’s lots. Many of the neighborhood streets around the stadium have parking restrictions during events, requiring a residential parking permit to avoid being fined or towed — a rule that Denver parking agents often enforce vigilantly.
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